I Won't Say (I'm in Love)
by Fushigi Doll
Summary: Hyuuga Hinata, a kunoichi who forgot how being in love feels like despite capturing the hearts of countless men. But don't fret! A certain Kazekage won't mind teaching her again...albeit unconsciously.
1. Prologue & Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello to all readers! This is my first story… well, not really the first that I've written but the first I've published in fanfiction. Anyways, this story is inspired by the song in Disney Hercules "I won't Say (I'm In Love)", thus, the title :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Prologue**

Blond and Pink…

Two people, a boy and a girl. No, more like a _man _and a _woman_. They were standing face-to-face, lips locked together.

That was the last thing the fifteen year old Hyuuga Hinata saw before she deactivated her Byakugan, her bloodline limit, and stared stunned in front of two closed wooden doors of the Hokage's office. Tears slid down her face as she took a step back and turned to leave in silence bringing with her a shattered heart.

Ever since that day, Hinata, a kunoichi, never allowed her heart to hurt again.

* * *

**I Won't Say (I'm In Love)**

**Chapter 1**

Hyuuga Hinata, heiress to the famous and powerful Hyuuga clan, an eighteen-year old female ninja with midnight-colored hair and pale eyes, stared at the window of her room as she witnessed the rising of the sun in the hidden village of the leaf, Konohagakure. Her pale complexion glowed as the sun shone on her and a smiled formed on her lips. "It's a beautiful day today." She said to herself. A knock was then heard on her door.

"Hinata-sama?" a female voice called outside of her room.

"Yes?" the Hyuuga responded.

"It's time for breakfast."

"I understand. I'll be down in a minute."

Hinata got out of bed and immediately approached her closet. She put on her black pants, black fishnet shirt and her big light violet hooded jacket with white raglan sleeves – her usual outfit. Lastly, for her footwear, she wore a pair of black open sandals before she dashed out of her room to eat her breakfast.

When she arrived at the dining room of the Hyuuga compound, she saw her father, Hiashi, her younger sister, Hanabi, and Neji, her cousin, already seated at the rectangular table eating their morning meal in silence. When they saw her arrive, their pale eyes silently watched her make her way to her seat beside Neji.

"Good morning" Hinata said, addressing everyone present in the room.

"Good Morning, Hinata-sama." Neji responded with a warm smile, his pale eyes staring kindly at her.

"Good Morning, Neji-niisan." Hinata greeted back with the same warmth in her smile. It has been a long time since Neji and Hinata got along well. They were cousins but they treat each other like how real siblings would.

"Good morning Hinata-nee" Hanabi said in her small voice.

Hinata greeted her back with the same smile she showed Neji and began eating her meal. Once again, a comfortable silence fell over the room until Hiashi, who was seated at the head of the table, cleared his throat. Three pairs of eyes turned to look at the current head of the clan.

"Hinata, you should probably do something about those guys who keep coming here just with the intentions of wanting to see you." Hiashi said. Hinata's father used to dislike her calling her weak and useless when she was still so young. But as time passed by, he gradually realized that Hinata was more than that. She's a jounin now, together with Neji, and has the potential of being in the ANBU. She _could _be in the ANBU but she immediately refused when she was offered to. She may be a very strong kunoichi now but Hinata was still Hinata – a pacifist.

"Otou-sama (Father), I think it's more proper to call 'those guys' as Hinata-nee's _fans_." Hanabi said with a giggle as she glanced over her older sister whose face was a bit apologetic.

"My apologies, Hiashi-sama. It's my duty to drive away _those guys_ away from Hinata-sama." Neji said as he intentionally stressed the words he spoke, his voice filled with annoyance towards Hinata's "fans". He obviously didn't like the sound of it – Hinata's _fans_.

Hinata giggled at Neji's obvious protectiveness towards her. "It's not your fault, Neji-niisan."

Neji just stared wide-eyed at Hinata who surprisingly was taking it easy. Though it wasn't the first time Neji saw Hinata without a hint of shyness, he still couldn't believe his cousin, who used to be overly shy and who faints easily, became someone who could laugh a matter off regarding her own love life. She used to be the type who would blush furiously when it came to discussions like this.

"Nee-san's right, Neji-nii. It's not your fault that they keep coming back at the Hyuuga compound asking for nee-san even after you tried your best to swat them off for countless consecutive days. They just can't help risking it all, even their lives, since Hinata-nee's so beautiful." Hanabi grinned, admiration present in her voice. And it was the truth! There were times when men would swarm over the gates of the Hyuuga compound and Neji kept on telling them that if they won't go away, he would use the gentle fist on them all and send them to the hospital making sure they won't be leaving the building ever again. Of course, there were those who got scared and left, it was Neji who they were facing after all! But still majority were persistent as hell and kept visiting the compound every single day waiting for Hinata to leave the place. And it wasn't because they weren't scared of Hyuuga Neji, it was because they _knew_ Hinata wouldn't want him to and would stop him from doing that.

Poor Neji, ever since Hinata slowly overcame her shyness, men started to swoon over her one by one until disaster became a nightmare to Neji who continuously attempt to drive them all away from his cousin _every single day_, draining his energy in the process. Hinata, on the other hand, kept on telling her cousin to leave the swooning men alone since they won't listen to all the threats he made namely sending them to hospital to killing them slowly but surely. Neji didn't leave them be, but he wasn't threatening them any longer, for he sooner realized it was futile to do so.

"Which reminds me," Hiashi spoke again. "There are tons of bouquets and gifts lying near the entrance of the house…_again_. Get them later. If you don't need them, you could dispose of them. They're from those…fans." he finished, although reluctantly. Like Neji, Hiashi didn't like mentioning the word. Though he disliked the idea of men drooling over his daughter, he can't help but feel proud for his eldest.

"Yes, Otou-sama." Hinata nodded as she finished her meal and stood up. "I'll be going first then." with that said, Hinata left the dining room and went to the entrance where her father mentioned about the gifts for her. There were a lot of boxes and flowers, but Hinata wasn't surprised anymore. This sort of thing was already normal to her…ever since that day.

"They don't know how to give up, do they? Those men, villagers and ninjas alike." a female voice said behind Hinata. The heiress turned around to see a brown-haired kunoichi. Her hair was tied into two buns each on one side of her head. The said kunoichi grinned as she saw the look on Hinata's face.

"Tenten-san!" Hinata called, a look of surprise evident on her face. "When did you arrive?"

"Just a moment ago. I was waiting for you guys to finish your breakfast when I saw you walk your way here. You finished eating?" Tenten asked. Of all people in the ninja village, Tenten was the closest female friend to Hinata.

"Yes, I just did. How about you? Why are you here so early?" Hinata asked as she ushered Tenten to the couch in the living room.

"I'm here to invite Neji for a morning walk." Hinata didn't miss the blush that crept up her friend's face as Tenten answered. Hinata knew that Tenten liked Neji – she always has ever since they became teammates. In fact, Hinata could understand Tenten's feelings more than anyone since she also experienced the same thing in the past, only a little different in circumstances. Yes, in the _past_. She also liked a certain blond blue-eyed ninja ever since they were kids.

Uzumaki Naruto, a ninja who used to have no value in his name, yet Hinata didn't care. She still saw him as someone who's worthy to be admired, worthy to be loved. All those people who used to hate and ignore him, those people who used to laugh at him and his "unreachable dream", or so they called, was now looking at him, respect in their eyes. And why not? He became Hokage after all. After the fourth ninja war, Tsunade, the fifth and current hokage at that time, retired and gave him the position. Now, Naruto has lots of girls chasing after him, although he doesn't realize that many had already attempted to make a move on him or flirt with him. He still hadn't taken the hint because of his "dumbness", as what the others name it. However, there is but one girl who could take all of his attention away without an effort – Haruno Sakura, a kunoichi with pink hair and green eyes, his teammate and friend.

"Hinata? Hinata?" Tenten called out while waving a hand near Hinata's face, cutting the heiress's trail of thoughts in the process. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Tenten-san. Why do you ask?" Hinata said forcing a smile.

"You looked like you were deep in thought. What were you thinking about anyway? Mind sharing it with me?" the brown-haired girl asked.

Hinata fell silent as she bowed her head to look at her hands that were now clasped together. She wasn't sure if she wanted to share it with Tenten. She wanted to confide to Tenten but she didn't want for her to know she was thinking _that_. She didn't want to remind her friend of what happened back then because if she knew –

"Oh my – perhaps…are you…thinking of _that_?" Tenten asked her voice dangerously low as emotions stirred inside her. Memories that Hinata wished for Tenten to forget were now gradually coming back to her.

"Tenten-san, please calm down." Hinata said, trying to control the situation before it gets any worse.

"It's been three years hasn't it, Hinata?" It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Tenten was now standing up and began pacing the room. "Three years ever since that _stupid bastard_ broke your heart!"

"Tenten-san, please…" the heiress pleaded but was completely ignored.

"That dumb, all-time loser, jerk, sorry ass of a Hokage! That, that…!" Tenten bursted. Her face was red with anger. She continued shouting curses as Hinata continued to calm her down.

"Tenten-san, STOP IT!" Hinata finally shouted.

In an instant, Tenten was silenced. Hinata then slowly let her take her seat in the couch again. They were both silent for a while as they tried to compose themselves.

Then, Tenten spoke. "I'm sorry, Hinata. I guess I was just angry…for you."

Hinata gave her a weak smile. "Yes, I can see that. For that, I'm thankful."

For a second, Tenten just stared at the Hyuuga, amazement in her eyes. Then, she sighed. "Why can't you just show that you're angry, or so sad that you want to cry your heart out, Hinata? You know, you could be at ease and cry in front of me if you want to. I mean, what are friends for? Don't keep it all bottled up inside." Tenten said her voice full of concern.

"Thank you, Tenten-san. But I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me." Hinata said as she still kept her weak smile plastered on her face.

Tenten, on the other hand, sighed in exasperation. "Come on, Hinata! Everyone in the world would probably get angry if what happened to you happened to them, too! I mean, you were heart-broken and hurt because Naruto got your hopes up but in the end chose Sakura instead of you! Not to mention –"

"What did you just say?" a male voice asked.

The two kunoichis gulped as their heads slowly turned to the direction of the voice. At the doorway of the living room was a man with long brown hair and pale eyes who was leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed.

"Neji-niisan…" Hinata squeaked.

"What was it about Naruto hurting you, Hinata-sama?" he asked, his eyes fixed on Hinata. It was clear that he was trying to control the anger that was starting to boil up inside him. It was no surprise to Hinata and Tenten that he was asking such a question. Neji never knew what actually took place three years ago between Hinata and Naruto. In fact, no one knew about this except Tenten who Hinata confided in a few hours after the incident. When Hinata first told her friend what happened, Tenten unexpectedly threw a tantrum saying she was going to beat up Naruto and teach him a good lesson. Hinata frantically stopped Tenten, or rather, _begged _her to stop. She also made Tenten promise to keep it a secret especially to Neji who she knew would act worse than Tenten. She didn't want to be the one to ruin her cousin's friendship with Naruto and she never will be…or so she thought.

"Tenten, what were you two talking about?" Neji turned to the brown-haired girl who was frantically thinking up an excuse so as not to break a promise with Hinata.

"Uh…uh…" Tenten's eyes darted from Neji to Hinata then back to Neji.

"It's nothing, Neji-niisan." Hinata suddenly said. "It was just a small…_argument_ between me and Naruto-kun, nothing more." The heiress flashed her cousin a fake smile of assurance.

Neji didn't say anything; he just stared at the two girls in front of him. After a few seconds of silence, Neji sighed. "Hinata-sama, you may be getting better and better at lying but that won't work on me, remember?"

Hinata stared at her cousin wide-eyed for a moment before bowing her head low, guilty of lying. Neji probably was the only person who could tell when she was lying or not. That was one of his gifts – he truly was a genius. "I-I'm sorry…Neji-niisan. I just don't want you to worry about me. I'm already causing you a lot of trouble, I couldn't just add more to your burdens."

Neji slowly made his way to his cousin and knelt in front of her. He gently placed a hand on top of Hinata's. "Hinata-sama," he said his voice gentle. "You are not a burden to me. I'm not just doing this out of duty but out of love for a relative. Hinata-sama, you are like a little sister to me so never would I think that you're a burden. Please, tell me everything that bothers you. Because if you won't, it'll only make me more worried for you."

Hinata stared into Neji's eyes, and then she turned her head to look at Tenten who looked like she was on the verge of shedding tears at Neji's speech earlier. Hinata turned to look at her cousin again who was patiently waiting for her to tell him about what really happened three years ago. "Okay, I'll tell you." Hinata finally spoke. Neji smiled warmly at Hinata as he rose to his feet and sat down beside Hinata in the couch ready to listen.

Hinata began narrating to him the incident that took place three years ago when Naruto was already Hokage. Hinata just returned in Konoha from a five-day long mission. Every ninja who just finished a mission are required to report to the Hokage's office as soon as they arrive. And that was just what the Hyuuga heiress was itching to do. Reporting to the Hokage's office means an opportunity to talk to Naruto – her lifetime crush. But as she was about to knock on the door to the Hokage's office, she heard a familiar voice talking inside the room.

"_Now, I finally realize… my feelings for you. This time, I'm telling the truth." a female voice said. "I love you… Naruto."_

It was then that Hinata activated her Byakugan. She wasn't supposed to be eavesdropping, but she can't just leave this alone. She wants to know what's going on – she _needs _to know. Who was it who spoke? Hinata's eyes widened in shock as she saw a pink haired girl – it was Sakura. And Naruto, who she had just confessed to, was standing in front of her, his eyes wide in shock. The room filled with silence. At that moment…Hinata saw her world crumble. Sakura's hands went to Naruto's cheeks. She gently lowered his face to hers until their lips met. Hinata just stood outside the room, frozen and unable to do anything besides stare in horror. It felt like the world was going to end, that she was dying. Her heart ached, her eyes watered. Soon enough, she deactivated her Byakugan, unable to see any more of it. With that, she began to leave the tower as she allowed her tears to continue falling.

"_Perhaps…I should come and report another time." was what Hinata said for the last time before walking towards her home._

"Is that the reason why you began being bold?" Neji asked, hitting the mark. Hinata reluctantly nodded. "I see" with this, Neji quietly stood up and began to leave the room.

"N-Neji, where are you going?" Tenten asked. It was surprising that Neji was taking it easily and calmly. Both Hinata and Tenten were actually expecting a worse scenario once they've finished telling him.

"Isn't it obvious where I'm going? Of course I'm going to finish him off for Hinata-sama. I'll make sure no one would be able to recognize him once I'm done." Neji said as if it was the most rational thing to do.

They take it back…Neji was still Neji when it comes to protecting Hinata.

"Please don't do that!" Hinata quickly said. "Don't do anything, Neji-niisan. It's not his fault. I'm the one –"

"Don't blame yourself, Hinata-sama. Because it is _clearly_ his fault for making you think like that." Neji said, his voice was menacing.

"He's right, Hinata." Tenten agreed. "Don't go blaming yourself for other's faults. You're always like that. You're such a saint it makes me cry."

* * *

Night came, showing the full moon glowing through the darkness. Hinata was in her room, seated on her bed with a pillow in her hands. She was remembering the conversation she had with Tenten earlier that morning.

"_Why can't you just show that you're angry, or so sad that you want to cry your heart out, Hinata? You know, you could be at ease and cry in front of me if you want to. I mean, what are friends for? Don't keep it all bottled up inside." Tenten said her voice full of concern._

"_Come on, Hinata! Everyone in the world would probably get angry if what happened to you happened to them, too!" Tenten shouted._

"It's not that I'm not angry…it's not that I can't cry." Hinata mumbled to herself while hugging her pillow tightly. "It's just that I…find myself unable to show my deepest emotions in front of someone anymore."

Tears silently slid down her cheeks, dripping to her pillow. "It looks like…I forgot how to show my emotions."

Hinata looked up at the sky from her window while asking no one in particular, "Ne, what…is _love_?"

* * *

**A/N: I deeply apologize for all the drama in this chapter. Though, I still hope you guys liked it. Please do tell me of your opinions, be it negative or positive. I'll do my best in updating as soon as possible. Thank you.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I thank you to all those who took their time reviewing my work. You don't have any idea how happy I was when I read your comments. Regarding the review of ****FaerieLight** **and ****LeeRocks****,**** I apologize for the confusion. The story told to Neji was just part of what really happened three years ago. I'll reveal the whole story in this chapter also for convenience for the readers. Again, I'm sorry. But I hope you would still enjoy reading my story. Here's Chapter 2.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 2**

"Preparations for the chunin exam?" a guy with red hair and jade eyes asked in a monotone. "So it's already that time, huh? I never noticed." He said, his eyes focusing at his paperwork.

"It's not surprising for you to say that. You're the Kazekage after all, Gaara. And everybody knows you're very busy." a blonde kunoichi with a hairstyle of four ponytails, two on each side of her head, and dark green eyes said at the man sitting in front of her behind a huge desk. They were in the office of the Kazekage in Sunagakure, the hidden village of the sand.

Gaara merely nodded at the girl's statement. "How long are you going to be away again?"

"A week at the least. I'll be staying in Konoha probably for four days." The girl said thoughtfully.

For a moment, she waited patiently for a reaction from her stoic younger sibling whose attention was still on the pile of paperwork on his desk.

"I should be going now. I'm being put to work as soon as I get there. And they needed all the help they can get." The blonde kunoichi said after a while as she turned to leave.

"Temari" Gaara called out.

Temari, the name of the blonde kunoichi, stopped in her tracks and turned her head to look at the Kazekagae inquisitively. He was now looking at her.

"Take care" was all he said before drawing his attention back to the stack of papers in his hands.

Temari's eyes widened in surprise but she immediately smiled. She knows her sibling cares, though he doesn't say it or even at least show it. Sure, there are times he does, but that's only if he really feels there's a need to say it. "_I didn't expect for him to really miss me this much. What a cute younger brother!_" Temari thought with a sly grin on her face.

"Try not to enjoy too much of your stay or you might end up wasting your time with the Nara you keep talking about so much." Gaara said in a monotone. Nara Shikamaru, a Konoha ninja with dark brown eyes and black hair tied into a ponytail, was usually the one to guide Temari during her few stays in Leaf Village as the ambassador of Suna. Every time she returns in Suna from Konoha, she may not have realized it, but her topics would often drift to the Shikamaru calling him 'a lazy bum' or 'lazy-ass'. At her first few visits, it wasn't yet that often. She may have mentioned it once or twice but never was a topic about him lengthy. However, as time passes by, she became rather eager and impatient in going to Konoha and after she comes back, topics would either begin or end with him. His name written all over Temari's face to the point that even Gaara, who doesn't care about other's businesses, noticed she was interested in him.

Temari's grin on her face was immediately replaced with a blush as she swiftly turned her body around. So, _that's_ what he was worried about! "N-N-N-NARA?!" she stuttered, her face now as red as a tomato. "I-I'm d-d-definitely not in l-l-love with th-that lazy bum!"

"Who said anything about you being in love?" Gaara said, not looking up.

_Oh crap_. "H-huh?! N-no one!" Temari answered, unable to get rid of her stuttering which she was now silently cursing. "I-I sh-should go n-now." Temari started to walk towards the door but was again stopped by Gaara.

"What do you see in that Nara that makes you like him so much?" he asked, surprisingly not in a monotone but in a curious tone.

Temari turned to look at her sibling once again. "I…" she paused. "I honestly don't know." Temari finished, realizing that it was futile to continue denying the fact of having interest in Shikamaru. And then it hit her. "Wait a minute, why are _you_ suddenly asking such a question?" she said while pointing a finger to Gaara who was still busy with his papers.

Gaara sighed and shrugged. "I've once read in a book that when a person likes someone, they tend to change…like you did. I just don't understand why or how someone…how do you call it?" he asked as he tries to remember the words he need.

"Falls in love?" Temari suggested.

"That." Gaara said.

Temari giggled at her brother's curiousity. Of course Gaara won't understand that sort of thing! He has never been in love before! "I guess the girls who are chasing after you aren't helping, huh?" Temari thought out loud.

"Why would they help? What for?"

Temari sighed in exasperation. "Gaara, even if I explain to you the concepts of being in love, you won't understand until you experience it yourself. Why people fall in love, you ask. Every question in your mind regarding that will all be answered once you learn how to fall in love _yourself._"

"At least tell me the feeling you feel."

Temari thought for a moment before answering. "When you fall in love, you feel feelings you can't describe. You feel all kinds of emotions when you're around that person. Your heart skips a beat and beats fast that you feel like your chest can barely contain your heart and that your heart will explode anytime soon. It's really hard to explain this kind of thing and you may not understand this yet. But I know you'll be able to soon enough." Temari gave Gaara a reassuring smile.

"When's soon enough?" Gaara asked, no longer focusing on his work.

"I'm not pretty sure. All I can say is you wait." Temari said. "Well, I'm a bit behind schedule. I really should be going. Bye, Gaara."

* * *

"I'm sorry for making you do this, Hinata-chan." A guy with blond hair and blue eyes said. "It's supposed to be my work yet I'm making you do it and at an early time at that."

"It's okay, Naruto-sama. I don't have anything to do anyways." Hinata said with a smile. She was at the Hokage's office with Naruto. It was still early in the morning when she arrived at the Hokage tower for her missions. As she opened the door to the Hokage's office, Naruto was sitting behind his desk looking as if his soul left him. When he noticed Hinata, he quickly ran to her and hugged her tightly while begging for help on his paperwork.

"Hey, Hinata-chan! I thought I told you, no formalities. Call me Naruto, just _Naruto_." He said syllabicating his name.

"I'm sorry. It's just that you're the Hokage now so it's just right to call you 'Naruto-sama', Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she stacked the papers she was holding in a pile.

"I guess 'kun' is fine. Well, I'm glad you're treating me like a Hokage, Hinata-chan. But our friends just call me Naruto and not Hokage-sama." Naruto pouted.

Hinata can't help but smile. "I think that's because they don't want you to feel awkward. It's true they should treat you with respect now but that's the very reason they want to act casual with you so that you would feel comfortable with your position as Hokage."

Naruto was silent as he processed Hinata's words. "Is that so? Then, I'd like to think of it that way! Thanks, Hinata-chan!" he beamed at the pale-skinned girl.

Hinata just nodded and went on working on the pile of paperwork. Silence filled the room. Naruto stopped on working and instead stared at the heiress in front of him who kept her attention to what she was doing.

"You've changed." Naruto said in a while, his voice almost like a whisper. "You used to stutter a lot." He chuckled.

Hinata said nothing; she still kept on working, not even sparing a glance at the blond who still stared at her.

"Hinata" Naruto called out surprising the girl. He called her name without an honorific. He never calls her name alone; he would always call her 'Hinata-chan'. But there was once a time when he called her 'Hinata' – It was the incident three years ago.

"Hinata" Naruto called out again his voice gentle as he stood up from his chair and slowly made his way towards the heiress who was in front of his desk seated.

Hinata flinched. This scene was like three years ago…when he confessed. Her chest started to pound fast. She was nervous. "_What's going on? What's going on? Why is he calling me like that? What does he want to say?!" _Hinata freaked out in her thoughts. Naruto was now standing in front of her, waiting for her to respond. The heiress slowly looked up, afraid of what was going to happen. As her eyes rested on Naruto's face, she realized he was serious. Does he want to say anything? Perhaps that incident between them?

"Hinata…did I do something wrong?" he asked in a quiet voice.

Hinata's eyes widened in shock and confusion. "H-huh? What do you mean, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto lowered his eyes to the ground as he said, "I…I was wondering if I ever did something wrong because ever since I confessed my feelings to you, instead being closer you seemed to be more distant from me. You…drifted apart from me." his voice was full of sadness. "I just don't understand…I told you I liked you…and I _still_ do…or perhaps, you don't feel the same way anymore?"

"_What is he saying? I…I was being distant because he chose Sakura-chan! Why is he saying this?! What's happening?!" _Hinata mentally screamed.

"Hinata, don't you love me anymore? Do you like someone else?" Naruto asked as he was now kneeling in front of Hinata looking up at her.

Hinata was stunned and unable to say anything. What was he saying? She doesn't understand at all! Why was he asking these questions when he's with Sakura? Why was he saying all of this to her? He still loves her? What does that mean? Does she still love him? What does that _all_ mean?! What exactly did she feel towards him?!

She forgot…_everything_.

"Hinata?" Naruto's voiced echoed in her head. The world seemed to be spinning around her. She felt dizzy, her head ached, her heart clenched. She heard papers flutter and fall; she heard Naruto calling her, his voice seemed concerned. Then…everything went black.

"_It's a five-day long mission, Hinata-chan. Are you sure you're okay without a team?" Naruto asked Hinata who was standing in front of his desk, playing with her fingers._

"_Y-yes, H-hokage-sama." Hinata shyly said her face a shade of pink._

"_Then, it's settled." he said. Then, for a few seconds, Naruto fell silent. "Um, actually, I didn't call you to give you your mission." He said after a while, a slight blush grazing his cheeks._

_The heiress's head snapped up. "E-eh? W-w-what do y-you mean, H-hokage-sama?"_

"_Naruto…call me Naruto, Hinata-chan. You make me feel so important it makes me uneasy." He grinned._

"_Y-yes, Ho – I mean N-n-naruto…-kun." she said as her blush deepened, becoming a shade of red._

"_That's it, although not quite what I had in mind." He chuckled. Hinata was about to apologize when she was cut off. "Anyways, I called you for a very different reason…not relating to missions. I guess you could say I abused my position as Hokage." he said as he scratched the back of his head._

"_W-what is it t-that y-you called m-me f-for, N-naruto-kun?"_

_Naruto's goofy face became serious almost immediately. "Hinata" he called out, his voice firm as he stood from his seat and went in front of his desk. He was now standing face-to-face with the Hyuuga. _

"_Y-y-y-yes?" Hinata stuttered blushing furiously._

"_Hinata," he started his voice gentle. "When you confessed to me, you said you loved me ever since we were little. Is this true?"_

"_Y-y-y-yes. I k-kept on w-watching you f-from a-afar." Hinata answered._

_To this, Naruto smiled. "I'm glad…to know that someone noticed me when nobody did. Hinata, you have acknowledged my presence when I thought I was alone. You were there for me, silently supporting me."_

_Hinata averted her eyes from Naruto and stared at the ground. She was now playing with the hem of her jacket._

"_Hinata…" Naruto took a stepped forward, closing the distance between him and the shy kunoichi. "When you confessed to me, I was…really happy. I've given a thought about it for a long time now… about your confession."_

_Hinata gulped. She could feel the pounding of her chest while her eyes remained on the ground. She waited for Naruto to speak again. But he didn't say another word. Instead, she felt his hand on her chin as her head was slowly raised. Slowly, her eyes fell on Naruto's neck, to his lips, and finally to his blue eyes which was staring back at her. The next thing Hinata knew was Naruto's lips was on hers. He kissed her gently. It was short, but it was enough to make the heiress blush an even darker shade of red. It took a lot of effort for her to remain conscious, trying her very…VERY hardest not to faint._

_It was all going well…until Naruto spoke. A boyish smile was plastered on his slightly flushed face. "I love you… Hinata."_

_That's it. Hyuuga Hinata… can't take any more. It's too much for her heart; it felt like it would explode any second now. And so, Hinata did what she was annoyingly good at – fainting._

_Fortunately, Naruto was there to catch her limp body. "Uh, Hinata-chan?! This is no time to faint. You've got a mission to do, remember? Please wake up!"_

* * *

Hinata opened her eyes to find herself back in her room at the Hyuuga compound. She turned her head to look at her window, it was afternoon. She remained still in her lying position as she tried to remember what happened. She remembered being with Naruto at the Hokage's office, she remembered him asking her questions…ah yes, he asked her if she still loved him. After that she fainted. No wonder she dreamt of that incident three years ago – of when Naruto confessed to her…when Naruto _kissed_ her.

She remembered everything that had happened back then; she remembered it quite clearly than she wanted to. What she can't remember was the feeling she used to feel. That time, why was she feeling so happy? She knew she loved Naruto, but what was the feeling she _felt_ when she loved him? That, she forgot. After returning from her mission and witnessing Sakura's confession, ever since then, she felt so empty, so…_numb._

* * *

"Oh, it's Gaara's sister! And you're here for the preparations for the exam, right?" Naruto said quite loudly. "Shikamaru's guiding you, as usual. He'll be arriving soon." He was lively as ever like what happened early in the morning with Hinata never happened. The truth is, when Hinata gave no response but instead fainted, he became depressed. He was disturbed by the fact that Hinata's face looked like she was scared of him, or what he was asking her. He noticed her quiver and her eyes stare into his. In fact, she acted weird when he began calling her name without an honorific, weirder than she already acted around him.

Dense as he is, Naruto noticed that ever since she came back from a mission three years ago, Hinata's attitude towards him drastically changed. At first he thought it wasn't Hinata, for she talked in a monotonous tone and not in stutters. He expected her to be blushing furiously and be shyer than she already was when she comes to report to him. He even thought they would be together then for he already confessed to her, but reality surprised him. All those things came back to him as he saw Hinata shaking in fear earlier at his office.

Why was she acting scared? He can't recall a thing he did that made her act so…not Hinata. Was it his face? Nah, couldn't be. He had this goofy face shown to Hinata like 1019282374 times already. He was so stupid, to which he admiringly acknowledged, he couldn't figure out the answer. Every time he tries to think, his head aches. And so, he tends to forget things like those. And the question regarding Hinata is no exception.

"It's Temari, you idiot shrimp. You should try and start remembering that now." Temari said not minding the insult she just gave to the Hokage.

Naruto was about to say something when a knock on the door stopped him. "Enter" he said. The door clicked and revealed a ninja with black hair – Shikamaru. One hand shoved on his pocket while the other still grasped the knob.

"Yo, Naruto and…" he paused to look at Temari who was staring at him with eyes that held meaning he couldn't decipher. "You." He finished.

A frown immediately formed on Temari's forehead. "What's with you?! Try calling my name for once, you lazy ass!" she exclaimed.

Shikamaru ignored her as he silently stepped into the office and closed the door behind him. "Troublesome." He muttered under his breath a smirk forming on his lips.

"What was that?!" Apparently, Temari's ears got used to Shikamaru's quiet remarks.

"Calm down, woman." The Nara said as he handed down his report to Naruto who was currently covering his ears. Temari was still shouting curses at him but he ignored it and said, "Come on, we still have some preparations to do."

Temari quieted down, but a pout was on her face when she followed Shikamaru out of the room. Both of them exited the Hokage tower in silence.

* * *

"Hinata-sama, p-please accept this!" a guy exclaimed as he bowed his head low while his hands that held a box were extended towards the Hyuuga heiress. It wasn't the two of them alone. A swarm of males surrounded Hinata while the one in front of her spoke.

"Hinata-sama, please accept mine too!" another one exclaimed. Several voices followed after that until everything became noisy. This was the everyday life of Hinata – and she had to deal with this _every time._

"Shoo! Shoo! Go away, all of you!" a female voice said beside her.

"Tenten-san, it's okay." Hinata said. "I'll take care of this."

* * *

"What's going on over there?" Temari asked the Nara who was in front of her. He stopped walking and looked at the direction Temari was pointing.

"Oh, that? It's nothing really." Shikamaru answered as he started walking again. Temari quickly grabbed his arm and tugged him, catching him off guard.

"How troublesome. What is it now?" he asked annoyed. Temari's hand was still on his arm.

"I want to know what's going on." Temari said her voice was low.

Shikamaru just sighed. "It's just Hinata with a bunch of guys surrounding her. It's a pretty normal thing as it happens every day."

"Hinata? Who's that?" the blonde kunoichi asked.

"Hyuuga Hinata." Shikamaru answered.

Temari's eyes widened at the name. "Hyuuga? You mean, the weak and shy girl who got beaten up by her cousin back at the chunnin exams several years back?"

"What a way to describe her."

"Is she being bullied every day?"

Shikamaru let out a laugh to which Temari responded with a slap on his arm. "What's so funny?!" Temari shouted.

"Look closely and you'll understand." Shikamaru's laugh still didn't cease. Temari did as she was told. She looked closely and realization struck her followed by surprise.

"They're hitting on her!" Temari said the look of surprise never left her face as she looked at the Nara, his eyes looking at the direction of their current topic.

"You never would've expected that, wouldn't you? Apparently, it's been like that for a long time. Hinata became bolder catching the attention of men in the process. Pretty troublesome, if you ask me." Shikamaru said turning to start walking again. "Let's go."

It was strange. Temari was curious as to why the Hyuuga changed a lot since the last time she saw her. She looked back at Hinata for the final time before silently following Shikamaru to where the preparations for the exam will be made.

* * *

The next day came. Temari was at the Hokage's office pacing the room back and forth. She was obviously steaming with anger. Naruto wasn't in the office anymore; he had some matters to be taken care of. But before leaving Temari alone in the office, he said that there would be substitute for Shikamaru for he won't be able to accompany her today and, maybe, for a few more days. And now, Temari just can't believe it! That lazy guy can't accompany her? And what in heaven's name might he be doing now that he won't be able to be with her today?!

A knock was heard on the door stopping Temari on her tracks. Since Naruto wasn't there, she would at least answer the door. "You may enter, the idiot's not here."

The door opened to reveal a pale girl with midnight locks peaking behind the door. Temari stood still with arms crossed and waited patiently for the girl to close the door and walk towards her.

"Good morning, Temari-san. My name's Hyuuga Hinata. I'll be in your company for today." The heiress said while bowing her head.

Temari couldn't hide her surprise. It was Hinata – the girl she saw yesterday. She admits that she's rather curious about this girl. Being accompanied by someone else other than the Nara maybe won't be as bad as she thought. "Fine by me." The blonde kunoichi said.

Hinata and Temari both left the Hokage tower. When they were already outside, Temari stopped and Hinata followed behind her. The blonde girl turned her head to look over her shoulders. "Before we go to our destination, I'll eat first. I haven't eaten my breakfast yet. You know some place?"

"What do you prefer to eat, Temari-san?" Hinata asked.

Temari thought for a moment before answering. "Omelette…I want to eat omelette."

Hinata smiled. "Please, follow me."

The two girls walked silently, this time, with Hinata leading the way. Everything was quiet and peaceful, until Temari noticed the stares the Hyuuga receives every now and then. Temari didn't do anything, she just observed. It wasn't her business anyway. She would've left the matter alone if only the guys didn't start approaching Hinata like pests.

"Hey, do something about this." Temari said quietly at Hinata who was already trying to excuse herself from the men who started surrounding her.

"I'm sorry but I'm currently on the job. I don't want to appear rude in front of our Suna guest." Hinata said gently to one of the guys. As soon as she said that, those men around her spared a look at Temari who was quietly observing from the side.

"Everybody, Hinata-sama is with a guest from Suna, we shall help her by giving her space." One man from the crowd said. All seemed to agree with this seeing as they started leaving the heiress alone.

As soon as all of them were out of the way, Temari didn't miss the chance to ask a question. "Don't you get bothered a lot by this? I've heard you're dealing with this every day."

"Eh? Where did you hear that from?" Hinata asked, turning her head to look at the blonde kunoichi behind her.

"From the lazy ass." Temari replied.

"I see." Hinata nodded.

"So?" Temari asked again, referring to her previous question.

"What?"

"You haven't answered my question yet. I asked you if you don't get bothered by all those guys swarming over you every time." Temari said a bit annoyed.

Hinata stopped walking, Temari stopped as well. "I…I don't know." Hinata said her voice had the slightest hint of sadness.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Temari asked but Hinata already started walking. She decided to let the subject drop for now. In silence once again, they passed by several shops, turned for like a thousand times, approached by men for like a billion times and at last, for what seemed like eternity, they arrived at a decent-looking shop.

"Here we are." Hinata spoke. Temari slowly went inside the shop, Hinata following shortly. The shop was neat and has a warm atmosphere around it. The chairs and table were wooden. All-in-all, it was an acceptable place to eat. A waiter led them to a table where they can sit. After they were left alone to pick their order, Temari raised her head from the menu to look at the quiet Hinata who was sitting across from her smiling.

"You can order anything, Temari-san. It's my treat." The pale girl offered.

Temari shook her head. "No, you order something you like, I'll pay."

Hinata's eyes widened for a split second. She then gave the blonde kunoichi a warm smile. "Thank you. But I'm not really hungry."

Temari nodded her head. The Hyuuga was really polite with her. No wonder those men kept on surrounding her. If it was Temari, she would've shouted at them or beat them senseless. They were too annoying for her.

Temari observed Hinata's features. She had pale complexion, as well as pale eyes. Her midnight hair was shiny and looks soft and smooth. She was beautiful, Temari had to admit, _too_ beautiful, to say the least. She was pretty sure that if ever Kankuro, her other younger brother, meets the girl in front of her, he would surely hit on her the moment he sees her. He is that kind of guy, after all. Women in Suna call him a pervert. But he isn't really a pervert. He's just purely…_flirty._

The blonde girl closed the menu and called a waiter to fix her order. After the waiter walked away, Temari turned her head to look at Hinata, a question crossing her mind. "When you answered my question earlier, you said you don't know." Temari saw Hinata stiffen. "What did you mean when you said that?"

The topic is making Hinata uncomfortable. She didn't want to answer, but she also didn't want to disregard the question of a guest so she took a deep breath and answered. "I also asked myself the same question in the past…but I can't bring myself to a conclusion."

"Why? You don't feel the same way as them right? So aren't they just a nuisance who chase after you?" Temari asked, now even more confused.

"It is certain that I don't feel the same way as them…whatever it is they're feeling." Hinata flashed the blonde girl a fake smile.

"Huh? What do you mean? Isn't it obvious that they feel love towards you?"

"Love?" Hinata echoed, her fake smile staying on her face. "Temari-san, can you please explain how love feels like?"

Temari stared wide-eyed at the smiling Hyuuga, unable to say anything. "_Explain how love feels like? Why is she asking such a thing?"_She thought. "Are you serious?" was all Temari could say at the moment.

Hinata nodded and stared into Temari's dark green eyes, patiently waiting for an answer.

Memories of her past conversations with Gaara flashed on Temari's mind. Remembering all those curious questions of his made her giggle. It was all the same – both the Hyuuga and Gaara asked the same question.

"Hyuuga Hinata-san…" Temari called her name for the first time. "You're surprisingly an interesting person."

* * *

**A/N: I went through Chapter 1 again and saw several typos I made. Also, I apologize if the characters are out of character but I'm doing my best. About the next chapter, I might be updating late. I got a lot of projects to do but I promise as soon as the second semester ends, I would be able to update faster. Thank you. Reviews please! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay so I decided I'm writing Chapter 3 sooner than expected, for me at least. My mind keeps screaming that I should get on with it. I so should be doing my projects, yet here I am unable to resist this damn fic's temptation. Okay, read on now… **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 3**

Hinata-sama _this_, Hinata-sama _that_. Each and every one of them just keeps coming…and the blonde kunoichi just had enough of it! With quick movements, she drew out her big fan and shouted in an angry tone, "Back off or I won't hold back in sending you all FLYING! And believe me, it won't be pretty!"

All eyes were on her, surprise and fear evident in their eyes, except one Hyuuga who tried to calm her down. "Temari-san, I'm sorry if we're being a bother. Please put your fan back, there's no need for violence." Hinata quietly said.

To Hinata's surprise, Temari smirked and withdrew her fan. "Damn right! Now can we go now?" she said her voice seemingly triumphant. Hinata, still confused, turned her head around to face the crowd that surrounded her…rather _once_ surrounded her. The heiress's confusion was soon met with understanding as she saw the path cleared. Well, what do you know, Neji couldn't make them scurry off despite all of his efforts in attempting to do so yet Temari barely even made an effort. Not to mention, it was her first try.

Hinata couldn't help but smile; if ever her cousin would see this he would surely be ashamed of himself for not being able to be an effective "protector", as he calls it. The heiress turned around to look at Temari who has already started walking. Three days had already passed since Hinata became Temari's escort during her stay in Konoha. Though she noticed Temari was a little annoyed that Shikamaru was still too busy to accompany her during the past few days, it seemed the blonde kunoichi didn't mind that Hinata do the job in his stead.

Temari and Hinata became quite close recently – Temari would often joke around the Hyuuga only to be disappointed for her lack of reaction. At first, Temari shrugged the matter off thinking that Hinata might just lack in sense of humor. But as she spent more time with the Hyuuga heiress she started to notice something was really off. It happened on more than one occasion when Temari would talk about some random stuff, she would catch a glimpse of sadness in Hinata's eyes.

"_Love?" Hinata echoed, her fake smile staying on her face. "Temari-san, can you please explain how love feels like?"_

That was when she first suspected that something was going on. The strange reactions, the emotions in her eyes, even her smile seemed…fake – this all bothered Temari to no end, realizing that she started to care for Hinata like she was her own younger sister.

"Hinata?" Temari looked at the pale girl who was walking beside her. Ever since they grew close, Temari never again allowed Hinata to walk behind her.

"Yes, Temari-san?" smiled the Hyuuga at the blonde girl.

"Uh…" the dark green-eyed girl started. "Is something wrong? Something that you want to share with me?"

The look of confusion crossed Hinata's face. "Nothing that I know of. Why do you ask?"

Temari stared on her pale eyes before speaking. "It's just that I noticed something."

"Something?" Hinata asked while tilting her head to the side.

The blonde girl diverted her eyes to the ground. "You seemed like…"she paused trying to find the right words. "An emotionless doll to me." She finished in a very low voice.

Hinata couldn't hide her surprise. "W-what do you mean, Temari-san?" The heiress tried to put on a fake smile but only half-succeeded.

Temari's eyes now darted back to Hinata's pale ones. "I meant you don't react much. You lack emotions!"

Hinata remained silent. Her eyes were plastered to the ground but her attention was far beyond the solid surface. After a moment of silence from both parties, she spoke. "Temari-san, you're just over-thinking things." Hinata was smiling at the girl beside her.

"No, I'm not." Temari quickly said in a firm tone. And she knew it! She wasn't over-thinking; she was right about everything! Hyuuga Hinata, of all the expressions a person makes in a day, could only show one or two. Temari noticed this, thus her suspicion. Hinata deals with everything with a smile – a _fake_ smile. And the heiress's action earlier just proved that she was a hundred percent correct. However, Temari decided not to say anything about the matter…at least for the time being. She was itching to know what's going on and she'll learn about it in her _own_ way. But asking Hinata won't do her a favor as she realized the pale girl didn't want to talk about it.

"Perhaps, perhaps not" was all Hinata said before they started walking again.

* * *

"What's the matter, Neji? Is something bothering you?" Tenten asked the guy in front of her. Afternoon came when they were standing in front of the entrance of the Hyuuga compound. Tenten came to tell Neji personally that they were going to train later with Rock Lee, their teammate who always wears a disgusting green jumpsuit and who always talks about youth. When Neji and Tenten were at the entrance and were about to leave the compound, the kunoichi noticed that her teammate was deep in thought.

"It's Hinata-sama." Neji answered after a few moments.

"What about Hinata?" Tenten asked.

"I've been observing her for a few days now. To be honest, I've noticed something that's been bothering her since long before knowing her story. However, after hearing what happened, I began to understand why." He said.

* * *

Temari was walking the streets alone, passing by crowds and shops. She planned on going back to the inn where she was staying for the moment. Hinata would've walked her there but she refused to let her. She told the heiress that she could handle herself and that she go back first to her compound to rest. And now, there she was, thinking a lot of things to herself when she happened to spot the shop where Hinata had brought her for her breakfast the first time. Ever since they first went there, she hadn't had the chance to go there again. She loved the food she ate before and she wanted to go eat there again. And then, an idea crept up the blonde's mind. How about she ask Hinata to eat breakfast with her tomorrow at the same shop? Now, that sounds good to Temari.

She swiftly turned around and made a dash straight to the Hyuuga compound. When she arrived she heard unfamiliar voices near the entrance. Instinctively, she immediately hid herself behind the nearest tree. It was a good thing none of them had noticed her yet. She wasn't intentionally eavesdropping yet she was hiding. _"Why am I hiding? It's not like their conversation holds any interest to me."_ she thought as soon as she realized her actions. Temari was about to step out of her hiding spot but stopped short as she heard her friend's name.

"…before knowing Hinata's story? What do you understand, Neji?" the girl with brown hair asked loud enough for Temari to hear.

The guy with long hair, as Temari guessed to be Neji, paused before answering. "Hinata-sama developed the inability to show her emotions due to what happened."

A gasp was heard from Tenten. Temari, who heard all of this, smirked. "I thought so…but what did he mean 'due to what happened'?" she muttered to herself.

"But that's impossible, Neji!" Tenten said disbelievingly. "Hinata is still able to smile! How did you get such an idea?"

"That girl just doesn't get it!" Temari muttered.

"Hinata-sama's smile may at times be warm and kind but never were her eyes showing the same thing!" Neji explained.

Tenten fell silent. Rather, she was unable to say anything. After all those years of being close to Hinata, she didn't notice it. Sure, she knew that the girl didn't show that she was angry or sad. However, never did Tenten realize that it was this bad. She wasn't the observant type after all.

"Tenten, shall we go?" Neji offered.

Tenten stared at his eyes for a while but then shook her head. "I'm sorry, Neji. You go ahead of me; I'll catch up with you guys later. I need some time to think and absorb what you had said."

Neji didn't have to be told twice. He quickly complied, nodding his head and dashing off from the compound with where they were. Tenten watched Neji leave in silence.

All this time Hinata was suffering with her inability?

"_Hinata-sama's smile may at times be warm and kind but never were her eyes showing the same thing!" Neji explained._

Tenten felt so guilty and useless. And she was supposed to be the closest female friend to Hinata, yet she didn't know!

"_Come on, Hinata! Everyone in the world would probably get angry if what happened to you happened to them, too!"_

"_Thank you, Tenten-san. But I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me."_

That time…Hinata told her she's fine. Was that because she was unable to show her how she _exactly_ feels? Is that why she told her not to worry? Tenten felt so ashamed of herself! While Hinata was able to help her with her problems, she wasn't able to do anything in return.

Tenten's trail of thoughts was interrupted as soon as she sensed a presence somewhere near her. It was unfamiliar, yet she found it non-threatening. The kunoichi simply stood straight and asked in a calm tone. "Who's there? Show yourself."

As swift as the wind blew, Temari appeared in front of the brown-haired girl looking at her straight in the eyes. Tenten was about to say something when the blonde beat her to it. "What is this about Hinata's story? Tell me about it." She said imperatively.

"You're Temari-san, Suna's ambassador." Tenten said recognizing the female in front of her. "You were listening."

"You know me. So, it's only fair that I ask your name. Who are you?" Temari asked.

"I'm Tenten." The brown-haired girl answered.

"Tell me about your conversation with the Hyuuga particularly about Hinata."

Tenten could only gape in shock before finding her voice again. "Why should I tell you? It's a private conversation between me and Neji."

"Tell me because I want to know." The blonde stated as a matter-of-factly.

"No, I can't…I won't. I'm not the one who could decide that."

"Who, then?"

"It's the subject of the discussion, of course. Hinata won't like it if I tell somebody." Tenten refused to give in.

Temari didn't say anything. She just took a few steps forward, closing the distance between her and Tenten. She stopped once she was a foot away then whispered to her. "She won't have to know now, would she?"

"W-what?!" Tenten asked incredulous. "Are you saying I'm going to lie to someone who trusts me?"

"Who said anything about lying? I just told you she won't have to know. Jeez! You're so hard to deal with!" Temari sighed in exasperation.

"Speak for yourself!" Tenten huffed.

"Now, why don't you just tell me already so I can do something about it?"

"That's why I told you –! Wait…_what_?"

"_Finally she's willing to listen!"_ Temari thought. "Tell me what happened and maybe I can do something for emotionless little Hinata." She explained slowly now.

Tenten's eyes narrowed on the blonde and eyed her suspiciously. "And why on earth would you do something like that?"

"Because Hinata's like a little sister to me. And, in my opinion, you're in no position to ask me that sort of thing, e_specially_ you who hadn't had the slightest idea of what's going on with her." Temari bluntly remarked.

Now, _that _hit the mark. Tenten winced as the blonde kunoichi pointed out something she was moping about earlier. Should she really tell Temari about Hinata's story? She said she was helping, so what bad could possibly happen? This, in Tenten's opinion, was her own way of helping the Hyuuga heiress of her problem. It was an act out of love and friendship towards her. It's just up to Temari how to put "help" into action.

In all honesty, Temari doesn't have any idea how to help Hinata at all. Maybe she has only said she would help on a whim just for the sake of satisfying her growing curiosity. Who knows, what's the reason! But what she knows is that once she has learned about what's going on with her new friend, she'll know the answer of the _real_ reason behind her actions.

"Okay, I've decided I'll tell you. So better listen carefully." Tenten finally spoke.

"It's about time." Temari muttered.

* * *

Seeing in the training grounds at night was a very difficult feat…except for Hinata. With her Byakugan, seeing in the dark even with her eyes closed was easy as finding Naruto at Ichiraku's. She was with her teammates who were seated under a big tree while she trains for her gentle fist style, which was a hell times stronger than during the fourth great ninja war.

"Oi, Hinata! Take a break already!" Kiba, one of her teammates, told her. A loud bark followed after his sentence which was coming from Akamaru, his over-sized white dog.

"I agree. Why? Because you've been going on for about ten hours without resting for even a second." Shino, another one of her teammates, said.

"I'm fine, Kiba-kun and Shino-kun." Hinata said when a whine was heard from Akamaru. "And of course I wouldn't forget about you, Akamaru-kun." She smiled.

"There you go again, saying you're fine. You only make as a lot more worried when you say that. I mean, come now, Hinata! We'll walk you home or your over-protective cousin would strangle us in our sleep."

"Well, if you put it like that, then I'll stop." Hinata said. She secretly took pity on Shino and Kiba for having to go through this all the time.

The three-man team…and one dog made their way back to their homes ending their training session that night.

* * *

Temari arrived at her inn quietly while reflecting on what occurred earlier with her discussion with Tenten.

The brown-haired girl told her what happened with Hinata, of what happened three years ago. She learned on how the heiress started to overcome her shyness but in its place slowly became numb, this according to Neji. Then when Temari told Tenten about Hinata asking her to explain how love feels like, Tenten became speechless. She froze to her spot and took her a while to give her feedback.

"_Maybe that's what Neji meant by her inability to show her true feelings." Tenten said._

"_What's that got to do with that?" Temari asked._

_Tenten's eyes bore into Temari's dark green ones. "She forgot the feeling she felt with Naruto. Or rather, her heart and mind purposefully erased that. Hinata became scared. She was scared to hurt again."_

"Her first love was a fragile one. One tip to it and it shattered her whole being, huh? So, it's that shrimp's fault this has happened to Hinata. Really, that brat! He's nothing but stupid and trouble!" Temari mumbled to herself. After learning all she wanted to know from Tenten, she felt her heart ache with pity as she made her way to her inn.

She pitied Hinata. She pitied the girl who has no one to talk to about it. The heiress probably kept it to herself for the fear of being a burden, which is always…_always_ how she thinks. Temari sighed. She was surely drained. She went to her bed and crawled sleepily underneath the covers.

Her mind drifted off to her home in Suna. She missed her siblings, Kankuro and Gaara. "I wonder how they're doing." she whispered. Suddenly, Gaara's question appeared on her mind.

"_I just don't understand why or how someone…"_

"_Falls in love?"_

"_That."_

A smiled curled on Temari's lips. Hinata kind of reminds her of her red-headed sibling.

"_Love? Temari-san, can you please explain how love feels like?"_

"_She forgot the feeling she felt with Naruto."_

Temari turned to her side. She was facing the window of the room that gave her the view of the starry sky. "One who hasn't experienced falling in love, and the other who has forgotten the feeling of being in love…" her smile widened. "They're both so the same yet so different. I've decided…in helping Hinata in any way I can!"

* * *

"Temari-san, why didn't you tell me you were leaving Konoha today?" Hinata asked. "You could have passed the message to Tenten-san when you told her to tell me to eat with you."

Hinata and Temari were in the shop she wanted to visit again. Since she hadn't had the chance to tell Hinata yesterday about eating breakfast in the shop, Temari asked Tenten to tell her instead.

"Sorry about that but I want to be the one to tell you personally. After all, it's my responsibility since I forgot to tell you yesterday before we went our separate ways." Temari said apologetically.

Hinata just smiled at this. "It's okay"

There was silence between them. Both were busy finishing their meals. Hinata was the one to break it. "Have you finished packing?" she asked as soon as she finished wiping her face with a tissue paper. Temari nodded her response as she continued eating. Today is the day she leaves the village to return to her own. So she wants to finish her meal as fast as she can.

As soon as Temari was done eating, she signaled to Hinata that she was through so they could leave. Both girls stood up and left the place after paying for their food.

They walked in silence as they arrived at the gates of Konoha where Temari will exit and return to Suna. Temari and Hinata noticed that there were others waiting for them. Shikamaru, being the first one Temari noticed, was leaning against a tree. He was looking straight into her with a smirk on his face.

The blonde kunoichi grinned back at him. "Were you waiting long, lazy man?" she asked as soon as they were in a hearing distance.

Shikamaru shook his head slowly. "Nah. I won't do something that troublesome."

Other than Shikamaru, there was Tenten and a group of unfamiliar men that Temari guessed to be Hinata's admirers. To put it simply, they were waiting for Hinata alone.

"I'm sorry I couldn't make them leave." Tenten apologized after noticing Temari glaring daggers at the men.

"That's quite alright. I'm leaving soon anyway." The blonde girl said. She turned around to face Hinata. "I'm going to miss you, Hinata. Thanks for escorting me all this time." She smiled.

The pale girl returned her smile with her own. "It's no problem at all, Temari-san. I'm going to miss you too."

With this, Temari nodded her head before turning to face Tenten. "Thanks for yesterday."

"It's all good as long as you to do your part." The brown-haired girl replied.

"You can count on it." Then, she turned to face Shikamaru who was still leaning against the tree. "I don't have to thank you for anything. Just make sure you'll be the one escorting me when I visit again."

"If that'll satisfy you." Shikamaru said with a nod.

Temari couldn't help but smile. "Well then, see ya!" she said to the three. Tenten and Hinata waved their hands as Temari leapt off .

After Temari was out of sight, Shikamaru spoke. "Don't miss her too much. That woman…" he paused and smirked. "Will be back for the Chuunin exams in six days. She's escort to the Kazekage…as usual."

* * *

"Oi Gaara, didn't Temari say she's going to be back after a week?" A male voice said. His face was covered in make-up and he was wearing a black cat-ear hood to match his black outfit.

Gaara just nodded. Every day, in his office, stacks of papers were a common thing. So, no one would be so surprised to see the Kazekage working his butt off in checking each papers and scrolls. And Kankuro was no exception. He kept on asking Gaara about their older sister for about an hour now. Gaara, on the other hand, was no different for he kept on nodding his head as he was asked. Never did his eyes leave his desk to spare a glance at his pacing brother.

It was then, that a knock on the door was heard. "Enter." Gaara said.

The door clicked and a jounin came in. "Kazekage-sama, Temari-sama has arrived." He said.

Almost immediately, Gaara and Kankuro left the office leaving the jounin standing all alone. As soon as the two siblings left the Kazekage tower, they spotted Temari who was taking her time in walking towards their direction. A smile was on her lips.

"Hoo! We were just talking about you!" Kankuro said with a grin.

"I'm back!" Temari chuckled. "So, how are my siblings doing?"

"We're fine! Right, Gaara?" Kankuro turned his head to Gaara who just nodded.

"Anyways, you guys finished packing? We're leaving." Temari said.

"Already?!" Kankuro exclaimed.

"You better rest first." Gaara finally spoke.

"Yeah, you better! Since I haven't finished packing yet…" Kankuro muttered with a sly grin. Temari just sighed and nodded her head. The three sand siblings made their way to the Kazekage tower.

"How's your stay in Konoha?" Kankuro asked breaking the silence that's beginning to get uncomfortable…for him. They were heading to Gaara's office.

Temari smiled. "Oh, it was okay. Though the lazy bum hadn't escorted me…"

An exasperated sigh was heard from Kankuro. "Here we go again…okay, get on with it!"

Temari glared at her brother. "What's that supposed to mean?! I'm not the one who asked!"

"Alright, alright…" Kankuro chuckled nervously. "So, what were you about to say?"

"Well, someone else has escorted me. Her name's Hinata."

"Oooh…A girl, eh?" Kankuro smirked.

Temari's eyes were focused on Gaara who she knew was silently listening. "And guess what? She's very interesting. Gaara, she asked me the same question you asked before I left."

As soon as he heard this, Gaara's head turned and his eyes were on Temari. "The same question?" he said in a quiet voice.

"What question?" Kankuro asked his curiosity in its peak.

"You see, before I left for Konoha, little Gaara here asked me how love feels like." Temari explained.

Kankuro's lips formed a wide grin. His tone became teasing. "Eh? Gaara, you curious now? You could have asked me, ya know! I'm expert at that area after all!" he said as he draped an arm around Gaara's shoulder.

"Oh shut up!" Temari smacked Kankuro at the back of his head. "You know nothing, silly. All you know are girls with pretty faces and huge busts! Anyways, you've met this girl already. She's from the Hyuuga clan, Hyuuga Hinata."

Both guys stopped in their tracks. "Hyuuga Hinata? Is that the girl back at the Chunnin exams when we were still kids?" Kankuro asked.

"Yup, that's her. She's pretty popular with guys now."

"Popular?" Kankuro echoed disbelievingly. "Jeez! That girl always stutters it's unnerving! I'm guessing whenever she's surrounded she faints." He chuckled.

"That's where you're wrong. I was surprised too myself and couldn't believe it. She never stutters anymore. Sure, she wears the same baggy pants and jacket but she's more outspoken than before." Temari said with a smirk.

"Really? Is she prettier?" Kankuro asked his flirty mode kicking in.

Temari nodded. "And _sexier._"

"Well, what are we waiting for, let's go Gaara!" Kankuro said to his silent brother.

"Kankuro, you haven't finished packing yet." Gaara said.

"Crap! You're right." After he said that, Kankuro was soon out of sight.

Temari chuckled. "Jeez, that guy. After he hears about a beautiful girl he runs off wanting to leave immediately."

"Why was the Hyuuga asking that sort of question?" Gaara asked.

"I was wondering about that too. Until, I discovered something interesting." Temari said with a smirk. She didn't miss the twitching of Gaara's ear. He was listening intently, and Temari was dragging the story.

"Apparently, she forgot the feeling of being in love. When you see her now, you could compare her to an emotionless doll." She said. However, to Temari's surprise, Gaara started walking again. "You don't seem to find it as interesting as I did." Surprise was evident in her voice.

It took Gaara a few seconds to reply. "It seemed private. And I don't hold interests for other people's private lives." Gaara said before walking away.

Temari stayed on her spot and stared on her brother's back. "Telling him about it won't capture his attention. Then I guess, showing him would do the trick." Temari said to herself. "Little Gaara must know about Hinata. After all, they both share the same predicament."

* * *

"Finally! You're both here! I was waiting forever, you know." Kankuro said with exasperation. He was already standing ready to leave at the entrance in Suna. Apparently, he arrived there first with some other Sand ninjas before Temari and Gaara.

"Shut up! We were waiting for you to finish packing. You didn't tell us you'll go ahead and wait here!" Temari shouted angrily. Gaara was walking beside her towards Kankuro.

As soon as they reached their brother, the three sand siblings said their goodbyes to the Sand ninjas. "Take care of Kazekage-sama!" one of them said as they waved their hands.

"Come back as soon as the exams are done!" another one said.

With a nod, Gaara, Kankuro and Temari turned around and started their journey to Konoha.

"Here we come, Konohagakure!" Kankuro said with a grin. "And pretty ladies!" he earned a slap at the back of his head from Temari.

* * *

**A/N: End of chapter. Hope ya guys likey. By the way, thank you for the reviews! The following chapters will already have lots of GaaHina scenes, I promise. Reviews? Thankies. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I am **_**so very**_** sorry for the late update. As I have told you, I was making my projects that don't seem to lessen. Enjoy... **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 4**

The wooden gates of Konohagakure were opened wide. Standing in front of it was a beautiful smiling maiden with midnight-colored hair. A large group of men was behind her. One would immediately wonder what the occasion was…and Kankuro was the first one to voice out this question as the three sand siblings saw the scene from a distance.

"Hey, I know it's a special day today since it's the Chunnin exams but they're just overdoing it. I mean, of course there would be ninjas to welcome us but it seems to me that even the villagers of Fire country joined in." the puppeteer said to his siblings.

A smirk crept up Temari's face. "It's so unlike you not to notice a pretty face, Kankuro."

Kankuro's widened eyes quickly darted towards the smiling girl. He immediately recognized her as the Hyuuga heiress as he saw her pale eyes. It seems she hasn't spotted them yet due to the ruckus going on around her. "Is that…?" the puppeteer trailed off as his attention drew to his sister who slowly nodded her head.

"Hyuuga Hinata" Temari watched Kankuro's face turn from surprise to pure delight.

"She's a babe!" he exclaimed. "Sadly enough, she tries to hide her mouth-watering curves…though I still notice it." Kankuro laughed evilly.

"So," Temari started while turning her head to the silent red-head, ignoring her other brother. "How do you find her, Gaara? Do you feel like knowing her story now?" she snickered thinking that she has prevailed. If Temari wasn't the proud type, she wouldn't be doing this now. Apparently, she was. Added to this, she was the type of person that when she believes something to be interesting, she wants to be agreed to. And that applies to just about everyone…even the oh-so-respectable Kazekage Gaara.

"What story?" Kankuro asked when Gaara didn't respond.

"About Hinata. I wouldn't like telling a flirt though." Temari bluntly said.

Kankuro could only stare at his sister disbelievingly. "Why?!" he practically shouted. Unfortunately for him, they were already in front of the gate near Hinata's crowd making everyone present stare at him in confusion.

"Ah! Temari-san, you're here!" Hinata said in a surprised tone.

"Hello, Hina–" Temari was suddenly interrupted by Kankuro's swift movements. For what seemed like a second, her brother was already holding the heiress's hands in his. Temari could only sigh.

Kankuro flirt mode: ON in 3…2…1….

"I thought I was seeing an angel, it turned out to be you. Been a long time, huh, Hinata-_chan_?" the puppeteer said in his what-he-called-as a seductive tone. It was obvious in Hinata's face that she was shocked as hell with the sudden greeting, especially from someone who rarely talks to her in the past.

"Y-yes, Kankuro-san. It's been a while" the heiress managed to say.

"Oh! You know my name! That's good, that's good." He chuckled. A smirk was on his face.

"Oi, Kankuro! I want to talk to Hinata so get your hands off her for a minute, will you?" Temari finally said her voice was annoyed. Kankuro did as he was told. We don't want to see Temari drawing her fan and making wild gusts of wind in all directions now, do we?

"How have you been, Hinata?" Temari asked with a smile.

Hinata also smiled. "I've been good, Temari-san. How have you been?"

"Same as usual." The blonde kunoichi grinned. It was then that she heard a gasp from the Hyuuga. Temari looked at Hinata with confusion before following the direction to where she was looking – Gaara.

"Kazekage-sama, I deeply apologize for not greeting you first." Hinata said as she bowed her head low. The red-head only stared at the Hyuuga's lowered head and didn't say anything for a moment.

When he got no more words from Hinata, he finally spoke. "Raise your head, Hinata-san." His monotone was there as usual.

Slowly, Hinata straightened herself up. Her pale eyes landed on Gaara's jade ones. Then, there was silence between the two. No one even dared to interfere. They were just there, silently looking at each other's eyes.

It seemed like eternity before Gaara broke it. "You look like an emotionless doll."

Gasps were heard from the group of men behind Hinata.

"_It seems no one but a few know of Hinata's condition." _Temari thought. _"But I'm glad Gaara agreed with me"_ to this, she chuckled silently.

"Gaara, you don't know what you're talking about." Kankuro said. "True that Hinata-chan's like a doll but not an emotionless one" he draped an arm around his stoic brother's shoulder.

Gaara didn't say anything. His eyes just darted towards Temari who was smiling kindly at him. But, Gaara knows Temari well. He knows she must be gloating right now that she could just explode. Gloating for her victory of being right that the first impression he would have will be that Hinata looked like an emotionless doll. And now, Temari's dark green eyes say it all. In fact, it's written all over her kindly-smiling-to-Gaara's face.

"Gaara, you're here!" a _very_ loud male voice said. Everyone's attention was drawn to a blond ninja who was running towards their direction while waving his hand.

"Hokage-sama." A group of ninjas and villagers bowed to him as Naruto arrived.

"Naruto" Gaara said in his quiet voice.

"I tried to get here as fast as I could. It's good that you're all still here." Naurto said with a grin as he put his hands at the back of his head. Gaara just nodded.

Naruto's eyes quickly went to Hinata. "Sorry for letting you do this alone Hinata-chan, especially when you always get this." He said as his blue eyes went to the group of men.

"It's okay, Naruto-kun." Hinata said with a smile to which Naruto grinned.

The blond draped an arm around the heiress's shoulder, much to Hinata's surprise. "What are we all doing here? Let's go!" Naruto said addressing to everyone present.

* * *

Gaara isn't the type to be curious about something so easily. Yet, there he was, trying to figure out why he was so curious about the Hyuuga heiress. He admits that he does find her interesting as how Temari had told him. But why in heaven's name was he very curious? All he did was stare into the Hyuuga's dull eyes and silently observe her afterwards. He did compare her to an emotionless doll but he saw something that made him wonder.

It was when Naruto wrapped an arm around her shoulder. He saw a tinge of fear in her eyes. It was only for a moment before her eyes became dull again but Gaara was familiar with it that he could see it. In fact, he was _very _familiar. He had the Shukaku inside him in the past after all. Everyone he looked at would always have the same look in their eyes. Apart from disapproval, there was fear. And that was just what he saw in hers.

And now he was itching for answers. Why was she scared, and to Naruto at that? Why were her eyes dull, when the last time Gaara saw her, they were full of emotions? Why is he asking these questions? Why was he curious as hell?!

And why was Temari looking at him?

"Gaara, are you alright?" Temari asked interrupting Gaara's trail of thoughts. The three sand siblings were now at the Hokage's office together with Naruto. They were waiting for a notice telling them that they could go to the venue where the Chunnin exams will be held. Even after the ninja alliance was sustained after the fourth ninja war, the Leaf and the Sand still held the examinations in Konoha.

"Why? Is there something wrong with Gaara?" Naruto asked. Kankuro was also looking at them inquisitively.

That's what Gaara would like to know. Is there something wrong with him?

Temari gave the red-head a final look before answering, "Nothing's wrong. He was just deep in thought"

Yeah, Gaara was deep in thought..._too_ deep, to say the least. His head was now aching due to all the thinking and questions he stressed his mind about. And it wasn't normal at all that his head was aching! Headaches only apply to Naruto_s_ and definitely not to Gaara_s_. However, this one just takes the cake. Gaara's head was banging like a drum. And it didn't seem to get any better especially when he was asking himself the same questions repeatedly with a growing confusion to boot.

How great is that? _Not great_.

* * *

The Chunnin exam was finished but Gaara's headache hadn't. Temari began to notice this as she saw the look on her brother's face.

"Hey, you don't look so well." Kankuro said also noticing.

"Gaara, should we stay for the night? We really didn't have to leave immediately, you know." Temari gently said.

Gaara nodded.

* * *

Evening came showing the bright full moon among the darkness of the clouds. And Hinata was enjoying all of it near a waterfall. She was in someplace in Konoha where no one goes to. Or rather, no one knows such a beautiful place exists. With the seemingly glowing waterfall, tall trees and green plants, the place was soothing itself.

Hinata was in pure bliss – until she heard the rustling of bushes. She immediately activated her Byakugan only to find the swirling of sand followed by a familiar figure.

"Kazekage-sama…what are you doing here?" Hinata stood up and bowed, deactivating her Byakugan in the process.

"Hinata-san…" Gaara said a hint of surprise was in his voice. "I came to get some air and found this place. But it seems I'm interrupting you so, I'll leave." He turned and started to walk away.

"No, it's okay. Kazekage-sama, you're not interrupting anything." Hinata quickly said.

Gaara's head turned and his eyes focused on the pale girl behind him.

"Please stay." Hinata said with a smile.

It took a while before Gaara spoke. "Are you asking me to stay because I'm a guest and you don't want me to be displeased?" he asked in a monotone.

"Eh?" Hinata was caught off guard by that question. But Gaara didn't push her to answer.

"Gaara" the red-head suddenly said.

"E-eh?"

"Call me Gaara." He explained as he turned around and faced her.

"But Kaze –"

"I want you to call me Gaara" he demanded.

"Y-yes, Gaara-san" she reluctantly said.

"Just Gaara."

"Huh?!" Hinata practically shouted.

"Is it necessary to tell you the same thing twice?" Gaara said still in a monotone.

"N-no, Kaz – I mean…Gaara"

"Good." With that, Gaara made his way near Hinata and sat down.

Hinata just stared at him in silence before sitting down herself though a bit away from the red-head. Silence filled the atmosphere but it wasn't something uncomfortable and awkward for the both of them.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Hinata said breaking the silence.

Gaara glanced over her before answering. "What is?"

"The moon."

Gaara remained silent.

"Do you not like it?" Hinata asked.

"If I still had the Shukaku inside me, I probably won't." he replied.

This time, Hinata fell silent. Gaara didn't say anything more. The two of them just stared up at the sky. They didn't hear anything else besides the gushing of water from the waterfall. It wasn't noisy, it was…pleasant.

"But perhaps I might start looking at it the way you do." Gaara suddenly said.

Hinata just stared at the red-head who was still staring up at the sky with the same stoic expression in his face. The moon was making his eyes glisten beautifully.

Hinata allowed her lips to form a smile that she was never able to show anyone assured that the Kazekage wasn't looking her way.

But what do you know?

Gaara was most definitely looking her way.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry if it's short. I still have school today so I made it in a rush and if I could kneel virtually I would and beg for your forgiveness. Still, I hope you guys liked it. Reviews please! Thankies.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Okay, I was very guilty about the short chapter so here is a new chapter as an apology to all my dear readers.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 5**

"Where have you been last night, Gaara?" Temari asked her red-haired little brother who was sitting on his bed at an inn. The three sand siblings were supposed to be leaving today and return to their village. However, that probably won't happen any sooner than they expected.

"I was out getting some air." Gaara answered.

"As what we have thought you did." Kankuro said. "But you weren't in the rooftop."

"So, where were you? We were so worried, you know!" Temari practically yelled. So basically, Gaara, the Kazekage of Sunagakure, was being interrogated and indirectly lectured by his big sister.

"I was out getting some air." The red-head repeated.

"Exactly _where_, Gaara?!" the blonde asked already annoyed by the lack of information.

"Someplace in Konoha that I hardly know about." He answered in a monotone.

Satisfied by this, Temari straightened herself and stared at Gaara.

Kankuro went to the side of the bed beside Gaara and reached a hand to feel his brother's forehead. "You're still hot." The puppeteer muttered.

Yes, Gaara had a fever–which is rare for him. The night when the three of them checked in at an inn was the time when Gaara's fever started. The reason for his condition–_over thinking_. Over thinking of what? Of questions he kept on asking himself about a certain Hyuuga heiress. Not that Temari and Kankuro had any idea though. That's why they were shocked to know about Gaara's fever.

It wasn't that bad though. That's why Gaara decided to get some air and at the same time clear his mind of things. He was about to settle on the rooftop of the inn they were staying at but somehow, for the first time, he couldn't just stay put. He felt uncomfortable and his head aches a lot. So he went down and took a walk, not sure where to go. But then, he heard the sound of water from a distance. Gaara didn't know Konoha had a waterfall somewhere around the area he's in. And so, out of curiosity, he made his way towards the sound.

There were a lot of plants and branches blocking his way so he used his sand to make a way for him. He was in no mood to do things himself. As he reached his destination, he spotted a person standing near the glowing waterfall. Apparently, it was Hyuuga Hinata…the reason for his severe headache.

"Kazekage-sama…what are you doing here?" she asked him that night.

Yeah…what was he doing there again? It's surprising the he even called her name. _Oh right_, he was trying to get some air but it seems that place was her spot. Anyways, it doesn't matter. Gaara was only curious of that place and seeing it already satisfied his curiosity. He was about to walk away when the Hyuuga stopped him and asked him to stay.

She was a polite one. But she didn't have to entertain a guest in the middle of the night. That made Gaara ask her, "Are you asking me to stay because I'm a guest and you don't want me to be displeased?"

He didn't care whatever her answer was; He was just bothered by one thing all this time. It was the fact that she was calling him "Kazekage-sama" when they were just about the same age. He felt really old so he made her call him his name…or rather, _forced_ her to. She complied, although reluctantly.

Gaara decided to stay for a while realizing that the waterfall made his headache tone down. And so, he sat down while maintaining a distance from her. He didn't want her to scurry off as what the other people who were once scared of him did. He wasn't a jinchuuriki any longer but his past was still terrifying to most of the people who have heard of him.

The Hyuuga sat down without any hesitation, much to his surprise. He can feel her watching him for a moment before turning her attention to the sky. The silence that accompanied them was relaxing and he was glad that the heiress wasn't the talkative type or he'll never have the chance of getting rid of his headache. He stared at the sky, just realizing that he wasn't able to enjoy the sight above in the past. His eyes used to only settle on the moon, especially when it's a full moon. He wasn't able to look at the stars and clouds surrounding it. But now, he admits he was glad being able to see all of it.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" the Hyuuga suddenly asked.

Beautiful? Gaara took a glance at the girl beside him. Like the waterfall, she seemed to glow under the moonlight though her skin appeared paler than it already was. _Beautiful_...wait, what was she referring to?

"What is?" Gaara asked looking up at the vast sky again.

"The moon" she answered.

Oh, so it was the moon. That made him remember the Shukaku again…_great._

When he made no answer, she asked him if he didn't like the moon. "If I still had the Shukaku inside me, I probably won't." Gaara said silencing the heiress. He once again observed the sky. His eyes darted on each star he can see then on the dark clouds that seemed to move slowly. Finally, his eyes landed on the bright full moon. He stared at it for a while before looking back at the Hyuuga near him. Indeed, the moon was beautiful. His jade eyes landed on her pale ones that kept their attention above. The moon looked much like her eyes.

"But perhaps I might start looking at it the way you do." Gaara didn't know why he felt the need to say it, but he just did. He stared back at the sky, now fully enjoying the view of everything, though his face didn't show any signs of it. He wasn't used to show expressions like his siblings but it didn't mean that he didn't try. He once tried to smile happily to a jounin after greeting him. Unfortunately, the jounin didn't smile back. He looked scared and he turned away immediately. In the end, he heard rumors around the Kazekage tower that the demon inside him has gone rampant again. So basically, his so-called happy smile turned into a demon's blood-lust-grin. Not once did he try and correct it as he knew people won't believe it.

He felt the Hyuuga's eyes rest on him once again. He hadn't even mind looking back. But when he heard the soft rustling of her clothes, he couldn't help but look at her. And that's when he saw her smiling face. It didn't seem to be her usual smile, her eyes were gleaming. She wasn't looking at him, she was looking up. Gaara wasn't sure why he thought so but maybe it was the moonlight that made her look so…_enchanting_.

"…until you're better, okay?" Temari said. Clearly, Gaara wasn't listening but he wasn't telling his blonde sister. So he just nodded his head. Fortunately, his expression's always indifferent so his siblings hadn't notice he hadn't heard what they were saying earlier.

"I'll go tell Naruto about this." Kankuro volunteered. Temari nodded her head and the puppeteer left immediately. Temari's attention went back to Gaara who was still silently sitting on his bed.

"Gaara, do you want to tell me something? It seems something's bothering you ever since yesterday."

Gaara was silent for a while before speaking. "I have a headache."

"Does it hurt that much to the point of getting a fever?" she asked concerned.

Gaara slowly nodded his head.

"Why was your head aching anyway?"

"I had a lot of questions in my mind." He barely winced as the pain was gradually returning just from remembering all the questions.

"Questions? Of what sort?" Temari's voice now held confusion.

"It's about Hyuuga Hinata."

This time, Temari gasped. Then her tone became teasing. "What's this? You interested in her, little Gaara?" she had her fingers held against her smirking lips.

Gaara slowly shook his head. "I'm not interested in her. I'm interested _about_ her." He explained.

"Is there a difference?" Temari asked, her teasing gone.

Gaara looked at his sister's eyes. "What's her story? Tell me." So he may be able to end the banging of his head.

"Now _that's_ what I wanted to hear." She said triumphantly. "You should've listened to me sooner. I told you she's interesting."

* * *

"Is that so?" Naruto said. Kankuro was in his office and told him about Gaara's condition and that they'll be staying in Konoha for a while until he gets better. "Sure, it's no problem at all! I'll send word to Suna right away. Tell Gaara to get well soon!" the blond said loudly.

"You got it." Kankuro said with a smile as he turned and left the office. As he left the tower he spotted Hinata walking the streets with what seemed to be her teammates. It seems even with her teammates around, there was still a crowd following them though in a distance as he spotted a huge white dog growling at them once in a while.

But Kankuro didn't care about that as long as there's a pretty lady around. "Oi! Hinata-chan!" he called out.

All eyes were on him in an instant while he made his way towards the Hyuuga.

"It's Kankuro, Gaara's brother." A brown-haired guy with red stripes on his cheeks immediately recognized him.

"Yo, Kiba! Long time, no see huh?" the puppeteer said.

"Yeah. You doing well?" Kiba asked with a grin.

Kankuro chuckled. "Yeah." Then, his eyes flew to Hinata.

A guy with black sunglasses who wears a hooded jacket notices this and immediately stepped in front of Hinata, blocking Kankuro's sight of her.

"Oi Shino! Move aside!" Kankuro shouted, obviously annoyed by this.

"Even you, huh?" Shino muttered.

"Dude, you serious?!" Kiba exclaimed. "It's already hard getting rid of these guys here. Don't dive in!"

"No can do. Spot a pretty lady, go for it. That's my motto!" the puppeteer said rather proudly.

"That's so lame, you know!" Kiba said.

"Why are you guys even bothering to do this? I mean, isn't it a tiresome job?" Kankuro asked.

Shino and Kiba looked at each other before looking back at the puppeteer in front of them.

"It is." Kiba admitted. "But we can't just leave her alone. I mean, who knows what these guys will do to her."

"Um…Shino-kun, Kiba-kun, you could leave if you want to." Hinata said from behind Shino.

"You idiot! Weren't you listening to what I just said? If something happens to you, your grumpy cousin will surely want our heads in a golden platter!"

"You're exaggerating. Why? Because–"

"I'm just saying we will be held responsible, Shino!" Kiba interrupted.

"Then, you should have just said so. Why? Bec–"

"Oh, shut up!"

* * *

"She became like that because…of love?"

Temari nodded her head. "Because of a shattered love."

Gaara didn't know such a thing happens when falling in love. Now he was really convinced that love changes a person. And the heiress was the perfect proof of that.

"Is this guy from Konoha as well?" Gaara asked.

Temari nodded her head in response. Of course she hadn't told him the whole story! She knew very well how Gaara respects Naruto so much. She fears that if Gaara learns that Naruto was the guy Hinata liked and was the same person who crushed her heart, he would return to his old self full of hatred. She's afraid of changing his respect to disappointment.

"I don't understand. Why did he confess to her when he loves another?" the red-head frowned as his head filled with new questions.

"Exactly what's been bothering me. But thinking about it, maybe he's confused of his feelings. I think he likes Hinata but at the same time likes another." Temari explained.

"What do you mean? He loves the both of them? How is that even possible?"

It was surprising how Gaara's so into the topic. Temari couldn't help but smile. "There are people who love two different people at the same time. That's when someone weighs their love. They think about it and compare who they love more."

Gaara nodded in understanding. "So this guy realized that he likes the other one more than the Hyuuga? And it was just after he was confessed to by this other girl?"

"Must be." Temari shrugged.

"Then why make a move on the Hyuuga when he hasn't even made up his mind yet?"

There was a few moment of silence before Temari spoke."Because this guy…That guy's an IDIOT!" Temari shouted as she stood up from her seat near the bed. "He's a dense idiot! That's what he is!"

Gaara just silently watched Temari glare at no one in particular while raising her fist, never flinching at her sudden outburst.

As soon as she realized what she was doing, Temari immediately dropped her fist and faced Gaara with a smile. "That's why I've decided to help Hinata." She said.

Gaara couldn't hide his surprise. "Why?" was all he could say.

"Because she became like a little sister to me." Temari's smile widened as she said that.

Gaara nodded his head before asking again. "Was this guy also the reason she became scared of guys?"

Now, Temari was taken aback. "Huh? What do you mean?"

The red-head paused for a moment before answering. "When Naruto came to greet us personally yesterday, he had his arm wrapped around the Hyuuga's shoulder. That time, I noticed that she was scared. Is she scared of a guy's advancements?"

"_No, she's scared of Naruto's advancements…" _Temari thought. "I-is that right? I didn't know." She lied.

Fortunately, Gaara bought it for he nodded his head and became silent once again.

* * *

Night came by quickly that day. Gaara's fever was gone, he was already perfectly fine. He rose from his bed and headed to the door grabbing his huge gourd that was lying beside his bed.

Now that his questions were answered, his headache ceased. All that was left was getting some of the cool night's fresh air which was his hobby during the night.

As he left the inn, he stopped in front of it. Rooftops…somehow, he wasn't into rooftops tonight. Where will he go then if not there? Suddenly, a waterfall flashed in his mind. Without much of a thought, he was walking towards the same place he went to last night. He had to admit, he liked that place. Nothing relaxed him better in Konoha than there. Back in his village, he had the rooftop of the Kazekage tower to himself. It was the highest of all the buildings there, so he got a beautiful view of his village every time.

As he neared the place, he stopped short as he heard the splashing of water. So Gaara continued quietly and took a look of what was happening. Was she taking a bath? Is it even Hyuuga Hinata? It could be anyone. The sight that greeted him made his eyes widen in surprise.

It was still Hyuuga Hinata. But she wasn't taking a bath. She was dancing…on water. Gaara silently watched beside a tree as the heiress twirled around above the surface of the water with her eyes closed. Some water seemed to follow her movements seeing as it swirled around her body. So she was a water element. She wasn't wearing her usual outfit. She was wearing a white nagajuban (an underkimono). She danced gracefully, danced _beautifully _that made Gaara want to watch more of it. Yesterday, he did find her enchanting but dismissed the thought thinking it was the light of the full moon that made him think so. But now, seeing her like this, in that outfit, in that...body. Gaara couldn't help but stare at her, speechless. If someone saw a scene like this, one would mistake her for a water nymph or something.

As soon as she finished, Hinata slowly opened her eyes. But what she didn't expect was seeing the Kazekage leaning against a tree in front of her, staring back at her with his arms crossed. How long has he been there? She hadn't even felt his presence.

"Kaze– Gaara, do you need something from me?" she asked with her usual smile.

She was sparkling under the little light of the night sky. Her long damp hair was resting against her shoulders. Gaara's eyes darted to her nagajuban that was now soaking wet. It was a thin layer of clothing that it gives someone a view of what's behind the cloth when it's wet. And that was just what the Kazekage was looking at–her skin covered by a thin damp cloth.

Realizing this, Hinata's arms instinctively went to her busts to cover herself, a blush becoming clear on her soft cheeks. It was rare nowadays for Hinata to blush, but she just did. She was standing practically naked in front of a man after all, and the Kazekage at that. It was plainly embarrassing.

Seeing as how she quickly covered herself, Gaara's eyes landed back to her face. Words were not spoken between them as Gaara silently watched her while Hinata looked away, still blushing. A wind blew their way that made Hinata shiver.

Gaara noticed this and so he asked her. "Do you have a change of clothes?"

Hinata just nodded. Gaara immediately turned around. His back was now facing her.

"Go ahead and change." Gaara said in his monotone. "Or perhaps, you prefer me to leave?"

Hinata thought for a moment before answering. "No, I'm fine with this." And so she left the water and went to a boulder where her dry clothes were neatly placed above it. She wasted no time in changing while her eyes kept glancing over the silent red-head's back.

"Gaara, I'm done." Hinata said as soon as she was finished.

Gaara silently turned back around barely sparing her a glance as he sat down on his same spot yesterday. Hinata also sat down still maintaining a distance from him. It was like repeating yesterday. Only, Gaara spoke first.

"Am I intruding your territory, Hinata-san?" he asked in a quiet voice.

Hinata turned her head to look at the red-head. "This isn't my territory, Gaara."

He just nodded.

"Call me Hinata…Gaara." She said pausing before mentioning his name.

He didn't know why, but Gaara couldn't suppress his smirk. "Is this revenge for yesterday?" he asked, amusement in his voice. They were now looking straight to each other's eyes.

Hinata flashed him a smile. "Maybe, Maybe not." She said. "Now, call my name."

Gaara stared at her for a moment before quickly turning away. "…nata"

"What did you just say, Gaara?" Hinata asked. Her tone, to her surprise, was teasing.

"Hinata" Gaara said, much louder now. He was staring at the grass under him. He wasn't looking at her, but he could tell that Hinata was looking at him.

"Yes, Gaara?" Hinata said quietly, almost like a whisper.

It was strange. At that moment, Gaara realized whenever Hinata calls his name, it felt like music to his ears.

* * *

"Didn't I tell you to stay in your room, Gaara?!" Temari shouted at Gaara who was standing in front of her with his stoic expression. One of his hands was clasped to the door knob of his room.

"Temari, you came banging on my door just to tell me this early in the morning?" He asked in a monotone.

Temari just stared back at him with an incredulous expression on her face before letting out an exasperated sigh. "I'm sorry, Gaara. It's just that you have a fever and it isn't like you to get ill that easily."

"I'm fine now."

Temari placed a hand on his forehead. "You may be alright now, but you should still take it easy. We're staying for one more day before going back, alright?" she said as she put her hand back down.

"Jeez, Temari! He's not a kid anymore." Kankuro said as he closed the door to his room behind him. His other hand was scratching the back of his head as he yawned, not even bothering to cover his wide-opened mouth.

"Shut up, big baby! I don't want to hear that from a guy who plays dolls and who wears more make-up than I do." Temari scoffed.

This made Kankuro angry as hell. "For one thing, I'm not a big baby! They're not dolls, they're _puppets_! And at least I spend hours improving my cool appearance…unlike someone out there!"

"Improving?! Is that what you call improving?! Ha! What a bad taste for improvement, Kankuro! No wonder girls run away from you!"

"They run away from me 'cause they're shy!"

"They run away from _you_ because you're ugly as hell!"

"You're just jealous because your Nara doesn't even give a damn about you! He doesn't even spare you a glance!"

"Wha– shut up! Why would I be jealous with someone who isn't even worth mentioning?"

"Oh, I'm sorry? Are you referring to yourself?!"

"Oh, is that how you flirt with girls? What a very effective way you have!"

"Believe me, it's the entire opposite of how I talk to you! Oh, are you even a woman? I thought I was arguing with a guy who cross-dresses!"

"Why you little– are you asking for a fight?!"

"Aren't we already in one? We're fighting verbally…stupid!"

"Um…" a voice near the three sand siblings was heard. Three pairs of eyes darted towards the source of the voice. "It seems I'm interrupting something. I'll just come back later."

"Nara" Gaara muttered.

Shikamaru was about to leave when he was stopped by Temari. "No wait! What is it?" she asked panting from her argument with Kankuro. Her face was red from embarrassment that Shikamaru was able to witness the scene.

"Naruto wanted to know of your brother's condition." He said as he glanced over Gaara.

Temari looked at Gaara over her shoulder before facing Shikamaru again. "His fever's gone now. But I wish to let him rest at least for today before going back." She explained.

Kankuro turned and left not saying anything, acting like nothing has happened. It wasn't a serious fight. He and Temari would usually fight fights like this, so it wasn't really a big deal.

"Is there anything else?" Temari asked Shikamaru.

Shikamaru scratched the back of his head before speaking. "Naruto says that if he's already alright, he wants to go and eat ramen with him."

"Huh?! Ramen?! What is that idiot thinking?! He doesn't even have the time to go to a ramen shop anymore! For crying out loud, he's the Hokage!" Temari exclaimed.

Shikamaru could only clear his throat.

Temari was immediately silenced. She narrowed her eyes at the guy in front of her and asked with full suspicion present in her voice. "What is it?"

"Actually, truth is…he's still able to go to Ichiraku's every day. He somehow finds the time to go there."

Temari could only gape at him. "How does he do it?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "Who knows? It's Naruto we're talking about after all."

"I'll go." Gaara said in a monotone.

Temari and Shikamaru turned their heads to him. He already had his gourd clasped to his back and was ready to leave.

* * *

"Oi! Over here, Gaara!" Naruto shouted while waving his hand in the air.

"Oh, there he is. He's really loud you could easily spot him." Shikamaru said to Gaara who was walking beside him towards Naruto. The two of them stopped in front of the blond. They were already in front of Ichiraku's shop. "Well then, I'll go now. I got a lot of stuff to do." With that, Shikamaru turned and walked away, disappearing into the crowd.

"I'm glad you're alright now, Gaara!" Naruto grinned at the red-head. People were bowing at them as they were being passed by but neither Gaara nor Naruto looked their way. Naruto was too busy being chatty while Gaara was busy listening and nodding his head. After a few more words from Naruto, and it's not really a few considering he's a blabber, the two kages went inside the ramen shop and sat down. It was amazing how Gaara's ears stayed intact and functioning.

"Oh right… have you ever eaten a ramen before Gaara?" Naruto asked after he fixed an order for both of them.

Gaara shook his head. "Suna's weather is always hot. Eating a ramen won't be a wise thing to do."

"Oh, is that so?" Naruto said. "Well, doesn't matter! You'll love ramen! Ichiraku's the best at making them!"

Suddenly, just outside the shop, there was a commotion going on. The people inside the shop turned their heads wanting to know what was happening.

"Hinata-sama, here are some flowers!" a voice was heard outside.

"Hinata-sama, I love you!" another one shouted.

A familiar figure went inside the ramen shop. It was Hinata with a bunch of guys behind her. As she spotted Naruto sitting on his spot looking at her, she smiled at him. But when her eyes shifted to the person beside him, surprise took over on her face.

"Gaara." She called out.

"Hinata" Gaara responded as he gave the crowd behind her a look.

"Hey, you guys! Have some respect! Hokage-sama and Kazekage-sama are having their meal!" old man Teuchi yelled at the men.

Several pairs of eyes immediately flew to Naruto and Gaara's direction. Both of them were looking back. Silence filled the shop in a matter of seconds followed by a few nervous chuckling.

"S-sorry, Hokage-sama, Kazekage-sama…" one of them started.

"W-w-we're leaving now." The group of men slowly exited the place after bowing down and saying their quiet goodbyes to Hinata.

"I deeply apologize for that Teuchi-san." Hinata said bowing her head to the store owner.

"Don't mention it. It's nobody's fault." Teuchi said waving his hand dismissively.

"Hinata-chan, you came to eat too?" Naruto asked.

The Hyuuga heiress only nodded her head as she sat down next to Naruto. "I was in the mood for ramen" she said, smiling.

Naruto grinned. "Hey, Gaara said he hasn't eaten ramen yet. I was just telling him how great ramen really is."

Hinata glanced over Gaara who was sitting on the other side beside Naruto. He was looking down at his bowl of ramen that was just served before him. He found the dish strange and it didn't seem like he was eating anytime sooner.

Hinata smiled. "It may look really strange to you but you'll find it rather delicious once you got a taste of it, Gaara." She said.

Naruto just realized…Hinata was calling someone without an honorific. And to someone he thought she barely knew at that! "You call him Gaara? It's strange. It's unlike you at all." Naruto said to Hinata with a soft awkward chuckle.

Hinata wasn't able to say anything. She just looked down at her own small bowl of ramen.

"I call her Hinata." Gaara suddenly said.

"Huh?" Naruto's eyes widened at him.

"We call each other without honorifics." Gaara explained in a monotone.

Naruto fell silent. He was trying to process everything. "Since when?" he asked after a while.

It took Gaara a moment before answering, "Since yesterday night."

* * *

**A/N: It was a good thing I changed the rating of this story from K+ to T. I guess I was playing it safe. So, how did you guys find the progress of the story so far? To be honest, I was depressed at how Chapter 4 turned out as a disaster. I was really thinking I kind of rushed the progress on their first meeting. T^T Huhu… I was telling my sister about it but she told me otherwise. Anyways, I thank you still for all your reviews as well as to all my supportive readers out there. Please tell me your opinions and whatnot to help me improve. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm sorry for the delay. Our internet connection was suddenly cut due to some problems. But anyways…Merry Christmas! So as a present to all my dear readers, here's a 3-chapter update for all of you! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 6**

"Since yesterday night? Naruto murmured, repeating Gaara's words. His head turned to Hinata who was looking at her bowl. The chopsticks stayed still on her hand. "Is this true…Hinata-chan?" he asked, his voice as quiet as a whisper.

Hinata's head turned to Naruto but her eyes didn't meet his. "Yes" her voice unnoticeably quivered.

Gaara kept silent, as he always does, but his attention was on the two people beside him. Hinata wasn't her usual self, he noted. Naruto was acting weird as well. What was going on with these two?

Unexpectedly, a chuckle was heard from the blond ninja. Gaara and Hinata's eyes immediately darted to Naruto.

"…Naruto-kun?" Hinata called out. The unasked question was clear on her voice.

Naruto's chuckle stopped but a grin was on his face. "Amazing! You two have become close overnight! That's so fast! Just what did you two do last night? Let me in!" he exclaimed.

Gaara and Hinata didn't say anything. It's either they don't want to talk or they're speechless…or somewhere between those lines.

"Hey, Gaara, what happened last night?" Naruto asked again when he got no response from the two. He was looking at the red-head with his usual goofy face while expecting for an answer.

"Nothing in particular." Gaara responded looking away from Naruto to look at his bowl of ramen.

"Eh? What's with that?" the blond ninja pouted. "Come on, tell me! I'm itching to know!" he persisted.

Gaara sighed. Knowing Naruto, he won't stop unless he gets an answer. "I met Hinata last night by coincidence. We just talked." he said not planning to explain further.

The disappointment was clear on Naruto's face. "Eh? That's all? What about you and Hinata-chan calling each other by first names?!"

At this point, Hinata quickly interjected. "Naruto-kun, don't you have piles of paperwork to read through today? I saw it when I was passing by your office earlier. Tsunade-sama might scold you if you don't finish it on time. "

Tsunade was the previous Hokage and the one who made Naruto the sixth after the fourth ninja war. After Naruto became the Hokage, Tsunade supervised his performance from his paperwork down to his responsibilities and duties as Hokage.

"Oh crap! I forgot about that! Baa-chan (Grandma) might destroy the office again with her demon fists if so that happens!" Naruto blanched. "I gotta go, Gaara, Hinata-chan! Thanks for accompanying me!" With that, the sixth Hokage dashed off the ramen shop leaving the empty extra large bowl of ramen. One would wonder how he finished all that with all the chattering he did, to which he did so continuously by the way.

After Naruto completely disappeared from Ichiraku's shop entrance, Hinata and Gaara focused on eating their ramen and didn't say anything for a while. But that was until Hinata saw Gaara's bowl. She noticed that Gaara stopped eating and his bowl was still full of noodles that it seemed untouched.

"Is the food not to your liking, Gaara?" Hinata asked looking at the red-head inquisitively.

Gaara didn't look at her but shook his head in response. "No, I do like it. I'm just not used to eating hot dishes."

Hinata nodded in understanding. "I see." She said as she began eating again.

There was a moment of silence before Gaara spoke. "You looked upset."

Hinata's head shot up and she stared wide-eyed at Gaara. "Huh?"

"I noticed you acted unusual when I told Naruto we call each other without honorifics. Then when he wanted to know what happened last night, you looked upset…and disappointed." Gaara explained while poking his noodles with his chopsticks.

"Why would I be upset, Gaara?" Hinata smiled when she asked.

Gaara slightly shrugged his shoulders as he looked at her. "Why are you upset…Hinata?" he returned the question.

Hinata didn't answer him. Rather, she changed the topic. "Since you're not used to hot dishes, would you rather eat something else?"

Gaara just stared at the heiress. It seemed she didn't care that she obviously changed the topic discussed with a guest.

"My treat." Hinata smiled.

* * *

"Gaara? Gaara!" a blonde kunoichi screamed almost hysterically at Ichiraku's shop. "You!" she pointed at Teuchi who was busy making noodles for his customers. "Where is the Kazekage?! Where did that bastard Hokage take him?!"

Teuchi looked up to stare at Temari who had her brows furrowed and eyes glared at him. "Kazekage-sama? If you're looking for him, he's with Hyuuga Hinata-sama." He calmly answered.

Temari's raised arm slowly settled down back at her side. Her face showed surprise. "Hinata? Why are they together?" she muttered to herself. Temari quickly ran off the ramen shop and searched the crowd. She found no signs of them both. It would take time searching for them aimlessly so she made her way to the Hokage tower, hoping to find them there or at least get some information of where they were.

She stopped in front of the door of the Hokage's office and knocked impatiently.

"Enter." She heard Naruto's voice from behind the door.

"Where is Gaara and Hinata?!" Temari immediately asked as quickly as she opened the door. She found Naruto sitting behind his desk with a scroll on his hand. In front of his desk, however, stood Shikamaru who looked back at her with the same surprise she held with him.

"Gaara and Hinata-chan? I left them back at Ichiraku's." Naruto said.

"They weren't there! The old man at the shop told me Gaara's with Hinata! Now, do you know anything? Anywhere they could have gone to?" she asked impatiently.

"Really, those two. How close could they get?" Naruto chuckled. "How should I know, Gaara's sister? As I told you, I left the place earlier than them."

"It's Temari, you shrimp! And what do you mean by 'close'?"

"Huh? What else? I'm talking about Gaara and Hinata-chan, of course. Those two became close overnight. And I mean so close that they even call each other without using any honorifics!" Naruto grinned.

Temari's eyes widened. "Gaara and…Hinata?" she murmured disbelievingly. "Are you serious?"

"Of course, I am! I thought you knew about this!"

"Of course not, idiot! I wouldn't be so shocked right now if I knew! Now, hurry up and tell me anything you know!" Temari shouted as she slammed her hands on Naruto's desk.

"How many times do I have to tell you I don't know?!" Naruto shouted back.

"Hold it, you two. Don't start a fight now. Naruto, you're too busy for that remember?" Shikamaru interjected.

"Jeez! Gaara's sister keeps on disturbing me! I've got Hokage work to do!" Naruto shouted as he unrolled a scroll.

"It's Temari, bastard! Drill it into your stupid head!"

"Now, now. Stop bickering." Shikamaru sighed.

"You, lazy bum! Help me find my brother!" Temari commanded as she turned on her heel and made her way to the door. When she noticed Shikamaru made no move, she glared. "Should I drag you with me or you'll walk on your own?"

Shikamaru could only sigh. "Women are so troublesome." He muttered as he shoved his hands to his pockets and started to walk towards the door where Temari stood waiting for him.

"Where are you planning to search anyway?" Shikamaru asked as the both of them made it outside the Hokage tower.

Temari shrugged. "I absolutely have no idea. But I plan to search every place in Konoha even if it kills me."

"Couldn't you just wait for him to come back at the inn? It would be easier for you, you know."

"Easier for me? Or easier for you?" Temari glared at him. "You're just too lazy to search and you'd rather watch the clouds rather than look for him!"

"That's true." Shikamaru admitted. "He isn't close to me anyway. Why would there be any reason for me to look for him? Also, it's not like he's in any danger. You shouldn't worry too much."

"Damn right, I should! Gaara has a fever!"

"You said he's already fine."

"Yes, he is. But who knows?! Maybe it'll be back!" Temari practically yelled. She lowered her gaze to the ground. "I'm just…worried for him." She murmured.

Shikamaru didn't speak for a while and just stared at the blonde girl in front of him. "If he's with Hinata, as what you have said, then there's nothing to worry about."

Temari's eyes quickly darted to Shikamaru who was now looking at the people passing by in a distance.

"Hinata's a gentle person, as I assume you already know." He said.

Her lips curled into a smile and her expression softened. "Yes."

There was a moment of silence as the two of them watched random people do their business in the streets.

"So…" Shikamaru started, breaking the silence. "Can I go now?" he looked at Temari with expectant eyes.

Temari's face completely turned to anger. "Hell no! We're still searching for him!"

Shikamaru exasperatedly sighed. "So troublesome. Why are you so worried anyway? It's not like he's fever will really come back."

"I don't know why I'm so worried. I just am! You don't know Gaara. He rarely gets sick but when he does, it's terrible! I don't want him out of my sight."

"You sound like a mother." Shikamaru said with amusement in his voice.

"Shut up and begin searching!"

"What a drag…"

* * *

"Is it delicious?" Hinata asked Gaara. A smile was on her face.

Gaara just nodded as he took a bite of the dango in his hands. They were both in front of a dango stall where Hinata had taken Gaara after leaving Ichiraku's ramen shop. The stall was just placed at the sides of the streets in Konoha together with other food stalls. Hinata would've taken Gaara to a restaurant when he saw the stall and told her he wanted to eat dango. And so there they were, eating together with dango sticks in their hands.

Eating _alone_ together? Oh no, they weren't. Not with Hinata wandering the streets. A huge group of men was behind them, of course, though not that large as usual. The only reason why she wasn't drowned in the crowd was because she was with the Kazekage.

Gaara gave the men behind them a quick glance. Hinata didn't fail to notice this.

"I'm sorry about that, Gaara. Should I make them leave us?" She asked in a quiet voice.

It took Gaara a while before nodding his head. "Please do." They were a nuisance, to be exact. He wasn't enjoying his food at all.

Hinata turned around and faced the crowd. She said something to them that Gaara couldn't hear. The men nodded their heads with a smile and began to walk away while waving their hands to Hinata. She stood there and wave back at them.

"Why don't you do that every time they approach you?" Gaara asked in his monotone as soon as the men were gone.

"I don't always have a valid reason." She answered with a smile.

"Stop that." He said.

"Stop what?"

"That smile of yours. You're obviously faking it so why bother when you don't mean it?"

Hinata was out of words. She just stared wide-eyed at the red-head who was looking back at her with his stoic face.

"You thought nobody would notice? You may look like you're really smiling but your eyes would always look dull. Don't think faking a smile would solve everything." He bluntly said.

Does she deal everything with a fake smile? Hinata hadn't even realized this. Gaara was surely observant…and honest that it hurt. She remained silent but she kept her eyes on the Kazekage who already looked away. He was right. She should stop faking a smile and show her real emotions.

But how? She forgot how to for a very long time already. She even forgot how to laugh! She forgot lots of things. And now, Gaara just made her remember that. She wasn't able to blurt out words except, "I'm sorry" Her face showed no emotion.

The red-head turned his head to face her. "For what?"

"I…" she started. "I…don't know."

Gaara was about to say something when he was cut off by a loud voice in a distance that seemed to call his name.

"…ra! Gaara!" shouted Temari from afar while waving an arm up in the air. Shikamaru was beside her as they both made their way towards Gaara and Hinata.

"Temari…" Gaara muttered as he spotted his sister.

"Gaara, do you know how hard I looked for you?! I thought you were still at Ichiraku's!" Temari yelled as she reached Gaara.

"Temari-san, I'm sorry. I was the one who invited Gaara to eat somewhere else." Hinata quickly said.

The blonde girl's eyes immediately darted to Hinata. "Gaara?" she whispered as she repeated how Hinata called her brother.

"Hinata, that was unnecessary." Gaara said.

"Hinata?" Temari's eyes went to Gaara. "Naruto was right! You two are calling each other's names! It's highly unexpected! Just what did I miss, huh?" she eyed the two like they were some criminals that got caught red-handed.

"So Naruto told you." Gaara said.

"Gaara…what didI _miss_?" Temari crossed her arms. "Since when were you two meeting each other?"

"Hey, you make it sound like they committed a crime." Shikamaru said.

"You, shut up!" Temari shouted as she pointed a finger at Shikamaru. "You, hurry up and talk!" she said as she moved her pointing finger at Gaara.

"We weren't meeting each other." Gaara said in a monotone.

"Oh, isn't that right? Then, why was Naruto telling me about you both becoming close overnight? What happened last night? Since when were you two meeting each other?" Temari asked impatiently.

"Like I said, we weren't meeting each other." Gaara answered.

"Then, _what_ were you doing?"

"We only met by coincidence." Gaara said.

"Since when did this _coincidental_ meeting started?" Temari asked again. She deliberately stressed the word "coincidental" as she seemed to not believe the meeting was of pure coincidence.

"The first night we stayed in this village." The red-head replied.

Temari gasped. "So, _that's_ where you went off to that night! So? Why did you leave out the part about you meeting Hinata?"

"Was there any reason for me to mention that?" Gaara asked in a monotone.

The blonde girl sighed. "Okay, you're right. There wasn't any…dire ones." She admitted. "But you didn't tell me when you met her yesterday night. And I almost died when I found you gone in your room!"

"That was because I didn't expect to meet her again. And was there even a need to tell you about that?"

"Of course, I'm your sister! I have every right in knowing your whereabouts!" Temari exclaimed.

"You're not his mother, Temari." A voice behind them said.

"Kankuro, why do you always pick the worst times to show up? Now is the best time that I don't need _you_ to show up!"

"Whoa! Is it the time of the month?" Kankuro teased.

Temari blushed. "_Now_ is definitely the worst time!"

"Temari-san, I'm so sorry." Hinata interjected.

The blonde girl's head turned to the emotionless heiress. "Sorry for what, Hinata?" she sounded surprised.

"You're…not mad?" Hinata asked.

"Huh?" After realizing what Hinata meant, Temari chuckled. "I wasn't mad. In fact, I'm happy Gaara became close to someone other than that idiot Hokage…and the guy in a green jumpsuit, though probably not that obvious. I was just…_brooding_ since little Gaara didn't tell me anything about meeting you at all."

"Brooding? That was brooding?!" Kankuro exclaimed incredulously. "Hell, I even mistook you for a dinosaur going on a rampage."

"Don't. You. Dare!" Temari said menacingly as she glared daggers at Kankuro.

"You know, it's no wonder she didn't get a single boyfriend her entire life. She's _way_ too scary." The puppeteer whispered to Shikamaru who happened to be standing beside him.

"Kankuro!" Temari yelled, a little flushed. "Anyways," she sighed as she faced Hinata again. "I'm tired and all from looking for Gaara. And we three still have some packing to do. So, maybe it's better if we all just go home now, right?"

"Finally! I was waiting for you to say that." Shikamaru immediately said.

"I know…that's why I said it."

* * *

Evening came but there was no moon in the sky. And so, Hinata decided to stay at the Hyuuga compound. She was at her room hugging her pillow, as what she always does when she thinks deep about something. And that's exactly what she was doing. Apparently, what Gaara told her earlier that afternoon bothered her a lot…though she kept denying it herself.

"_I noticed you acted unusual when I told Naruto we call each other without honorifics. Then when he wanted to know what happened last night, you looked upset…and disappointed. Why are you upset…Hinata?"_

Did she really _look_ like she was upset? Was she really upset? Even disappointed? If so, what made her look like that?

"_Stop that smile of yours. You're obviously faking it so why bother when you don't mean it?"_

"_You thought nobody would notice? You may look like you're really smiling but your eyes would always look dull. Don't think faking a smile would solve everything."_

After what he said, she realized things she hadn't been able to before. When she apologized to Gaara she didn't know why she even did so. Well, ever since talking to the Kazekage personally, she didn't understand why she did some things that were obviously unexpected to her…even to the point of surprising herself.

Take for example the first night she talked to him, she was able to truly smile even with his presence around. Maybe she was just amused that the Kazekage only realized the moon was a sight to see. Another example, she blushed in front of him the second time they met. And not just that, she even found herself _teasing_ Gaara. Not to mention, she even ordered him to call her name.

Oh kami! She made the Kazekage call her name! The audacity! And all this she realized just now!

What was Gaara doing to her? He was driving her sanity to the edge! By kami's name, she was showing her emotions in front of nobody…but Gaara!

Hinata was showing…_emotions_? Was something wrong with her? Was she getting sick? She was never able to show someone what she deeply feels after getting heartbroken. But now? What was happening to her now? Hyuuga Hinata showing emotions to somebody isn't a good thing …at least for her heart it wasn't. But Hinata was unaware of this just yet.

"Don't worry… they'll be gone tomorrow morning so there's absolutely nothing to worry about." Hinata reassured herself.

* * *

Sand swirled around Gaara as he scanned the place where he and Hinata first talked. She was not there, to his disappointment.

Wait…_disappointment_?

Now that was a foreign word, at least for Gaara it was. He came all the way here for what? He was wondering about that for a while now. Earlier, Temari was at his room saying that she was "keeping an eye to him". However, he didn't care and started to make his way towards the door. Of course, she immediately stopped him and asked where he'll go.

"Perhaps…you're going to meet Hinata, aren't you?" she said to him.

Nonsense! He was just doing his daily routine, his hobby. He was just going out to get some night air. That's all there is to it. But he still wasn't going to do it on rooftops. Not after he found a spot to his liking. Surely he didn't come rushing there just to see _her_, did he? He wasn't there because he wanted to at least say goodbye to her alone…_right_?

Hell! Why was he even reassuring himself with these questions? He already knew the answer! He was there because he wanted some night air and definitely _not_ because he was hoping to see Hinata! Period! End of Story…

…so why does he bother thinking about it?

* * *

"You all ready? Make sure you haven't forgotten anything else." Naruto said to the three sand siblings the next morning. Gaara, Temari and Kankuro were all at the gates of Konoha together with Naruto and the others. They were already saying their goodbyes before they leave.

"No need to tell us that, Naruto. We got everything with us." Kankuro said with a grin.

Naruto grinned back. "Well then, you all take care!"

"Naruto" Gaara said in a quiet voice.

The blond ninja turned his head to face Gaara. "Work hard, Gaara!"

Gaara nodded with a slight smile on his face. "I just want to thank you for letting us stay for a while."

"Oh, that was nothing!" Naruto grinned as he scratched the back of his head.

"The springtime of youth is still with you, Gaara-kun! Lots of good things can still happen to you!" a guy wearing a green jumpsuit said with his so-called "nice guy" pose.

"Whoa! I didn't see you there, Bushy Brows!" Naruto exclaimed as he looked at Rock Lee with surprise.

"This is the second time, isn't it? That you'll say goodbye to me, Hinata." Temari said with a smile to Hinata.

"It seems so, Temari-san." Hinata smiled. "You take care of yourself."

"There's nothing to worry about!" the blonde girl grinned. At the corner of her eye, she saw Tenten motioning to her to come close.

"Well, I better say goodbye to the others." Temari said. Hinata nodded and watched Temari approach Tenten.

"Hinata-sama" A voice behind Hinata called.

Hinata turned around and smiled. "Neji-niisan"

"Are you done bidding farewell?" Neji asked. "Hiashi-sama's looking for you. He said he has a meeting with the clan that he wants you to attend with him."

"I see." Hinata said. "I'll go there once I see the Suna guests off. No need to escort me, Neji-niisan."

Neji nodded his head and walked away. He was glaring at the men who were planning to approach Hinata.

"Hey, what happened to your 'help'? I don't see any changes in Hinata." Tenten said to Temari as she placed her hands on her hips.

Temari, in turn, crossed her arms. "I haven't started my…master plan yet. So don't be so impatient and just watch."

"Uh-huh. I certainly hope you have a _plan_. I don't think I can hold on much longer seeing that emotionless face of hers. It just pains me." Tenten said as her eyes went to the heiress who was being hit on by Kankuro…with Kiba and Akamaru trying to separate them.

"Don't think you're the only one. I've seen enough stoic expressions. I can't deal with another one." Temari said. She was looking at Gaara over her shoulder as she said this.

"Now, a farewell kiss would suff – mmph!" What Kankuro was trying to say was cut off as Kiba muffled him with a hand to his mouth.

"Would you stop flirting already?! Move your butt and leave!" Kiba shouted at Kankuro. His hand was still clamped on the puppeteer's mouth.

Hinata was left standing there watching Kiba struggle to keep Kankuro away from her. Shino was beside her with his hands on his pockets.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Naruto asked as he saw the scene of both Kankuro and Kiba struggling with each other. Both his hands were on the back of his head. Gaara was beside him watching the scene as well.

"That's a nice look for you there, Kankuro!" Temari laughed. She and Tenten were walking towards them.

"Mmph–! Let – mph! Go!" Kankuro shouted as he successfully removed Kiba's hand from his mouth. Both of them were now panting hard.

Gaara might not have noticed it but his eyes were unconsciously watching Hinata across him sparing quick glances every now and then. Hinata, on the other hand, was pretty much doing the same. But when they noticed the other person was looking at them, their gazes held. They silently watched each other.

"Hey, Gaara. What are you looking at?" Naruto asked as his gaze followed the red-head's. "Hinata-chan?"

Hinata's eyes quickly moved to Naruto. As soon as she saw him look at her, she smiled.

It was strange of Naruto not to smile back. His head just turned to Gaara who was still looking at the Hyuuga heiress.

"Take care, Gaara" Hinata said after she approached the two kages. Her smile wasn't there anymore.

Gaara nodded. "Farewell, Hinata." He said to her before facing Naruto. "We'll leave now."

"Uh…yeah. Sure." Naruto said. His attention seemed to be somewhere else.

"Is something wrong?" Gaara asked.

Naruto tried to smile but it turned out not very convincing. "No, nothing's wrong."

"Naruto-kun, are you feeling alright?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?" he replied putting on a grin.

"Come one, Gaara. Time to go." Temari said as she motioned for her brother to come.

Gaara gave Naruto and Hinata one more look before making his way over to Temari.

"Bye!" the others shouted while waving at the retreating figures of the three sand siblings. By the time the three was out of sight, Hinata turned on her heel and started to walk away when Naruto grabbed her wrist gently. Her head turned to face the blond. The others were already going away and Kiba, Akamaru and Shino already left.

"Naruto-kun…?" Hinata said in a quiet voice. Naruto's face was serious…and _worried_?

"Hinata-chan…I…" he started hesitantly.

Hinata waited patiently for him to talk.

"Hinata-chan…Hinata…um" he stammered.

Hinata's eyes widened in shock. He was calling her "Hinata" again. Alarms went on inside her and she immediately yanked her wrist free none too gently. "I…should be going…Naruto-kun." She said while unconsciously holding her wrist as if it was just gripped hard. Her head was bowed down and her gaze was on the ground.

"Y-yeah. Sorry." Naruto quietly said. He watched Hinata run to the direction of her house. As soon as her figure was out of sight, Naruto lowered his head and stared at the ground. Sadness was evident on his face.

"Hinata…are you scared of me?"

* * *

**A/N: My school's over so I could finally update faster. Yipee! And yeah, I know Neji has already *bleep* (not gonna spoil anything to those who still don't know) but I'm pretending nothing happened. To those who dislike it, I only have one thing to say: DEAL WITH IT. :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 7**

"Oi Naruto! Snap out of it!" a girl with pink hair and green eyes slapped the dazed Hokage back to reality. Considering it was Haruno Sakura who did the slapping, the impact was definitely as painful as a spilled ramen.

"That hurt, Sakura-chan! By what means did you even have to do that?" Naruto pouted while rubbing the back of his head where Sakura just hit.

"By all means! Do you even have to ask that, idiot?!" Sakura yelled at him. "This is your responsibility, remember?"

They were in the Hokage's office and Sakura was helping Naruto with his work. She usually does, actually, when she has the time.

"Is this an occasional lover's fight I'm witnessing?" a woman with long blonde hair tied into two low ponytails and golden eyes teased the two teens. She was seated at the corner of the Hokage's office

"Tsunade-sama, you know it's not like that!" Sakura protested as she faced the previous Hokage who had a bottle of sake in her hand.

"Aw, come on, Sakura-chan! Don't be shy!" Naruto grinned.

"Naruto! You aren't helping at all!" the pink-haired girl glared at him.

"You know I was just teasing you." Naruto chuckled.

Sakura sighed exasperatedly. "You and Tsunade-sama really have a lot in common."

Naruto laughed. "You heard that, baa-chan? Sakura-chan just complemented us!"

"That wasn't meant to be one!" Sakura shouted. A soft snore was then heard. Naruto and Sakura's attention was immediately drawn to the sleeping Tsunade. Her head fell back and the bottle of sake was still being clutched by her hand, though not firm enough to hold it any longer. Sakura approached her teacher and knelt down to her side. She easily grabbed the bottle from the woman's hand and stood up again.

"Tsunade-sama's surely taking it easy." She sighed as she placed the bottle on Naruto's desk after replacing the cap.

"Why won't she? She passed the position to me." Naruto said.

There was a moment of silence as the two of them continued with what they were doing.

"So? Any news?" Sakura asked with a voice almost like a whisper.

"About what?" Naruto asked.

"You know…about you and Hinata."

Naruto fell silent for a moment. "Oh…that."

Sakura noticed Naruto's expression. He seemed sad about something. "Why? Did something happen between you two?" she asked him cautiously.

Naruto's eyes stared on the scroll he was working on. "Not really. There was just something I happen to notice."

"Well, that's rich coming from you."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

Sakura laughed nervously. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. So, what did you notice?"

Naruto sighed. "Sakura-chan, it's not that I don't appreciate you listening to my concerns but I was just wondering. Why are you asking my progress with Hinata-chan?"

"Eh?" Sakura was surprised but then she immediately recovered from it. "Naruto, I know it's very awkward for you to talk to me after my confession and that…kiss. I know. It is awkward for me too. But I don't want all those years of being friends with you to go to waste just because of what happened between us."

"Even if I rejected you?"

Sakura winced as memories of Naruto trying his best to reject her in the least painful way came flowing in her mind. "Oh, rub it in, all right." She said with sarcasm before crossing her arms. "Anyways, I want to pretend that never even happened. I moved on, you see. I just want the both of us to feel comfortable with each other again…like how we used to. Like how Team Seven used to, especially now that we're complete again."

Yep, that's right. You haven't read it wrong. Uchiha Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura's teammate, came back to Konohagakure after the great ninja war realizing what his brother Itachi wished for him. He wished for him to be happy. And seeking revenge on everyone won't lead him to that.

He did come back, though he took a liking to travelling. It became his new obsession. Of course, he wasn't alone. He got a party on his own consisting of three people – three _weird_ people.

"You sure you really moved on?" Naruto asked with full caution.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Why? Don't you want me to?" Sakura teased.

"O-of course I do, Sakura-chan!" Naruto quickly said. "I'm glad that's what you think. Now I feel much better after you said that."

"It made you guilty rejecting me, didn't you?" Sakura said knowing all too well.

"Y-yeah, I did. I mean, I used to be the one to ask you out and you kept on rejecting me. But when you confessed, I rejected you. It just felt like I was throwing you away since I don't like you anymore." Naruto admitted with his head bowed low.

Sakura giggled. "Naruto, it didn't feel like that for me at all. In fact, I just regretted that I was too late in telling you how I feel. You're not to blame at all. Not to mention, I even made a fool out of myself when I kissed you." She said as a faint blush crept up her face. "I didn't know you already confessed to Hinata. By the way, why did you even let me kiss you? You could've just stopped me and spared me the humiliation, you know." she frowned at him.

"Uh…that?" Naruto scratched the back of his head as he blushed. "I was too stunned to say anything. I really didn't expect you to return my feelings and that's what happened. The next thing I know was…was…you know…" Naruto trailed off as he blushed harder. He wasn't used to discussing this stuff. He just can't prevent his face from heating up when he remembers the kiss with Sakura, and especially with Hinata! Luckily that time, he was able to control his blushing…or he would end up fainting like Hinata did.

Sakura nodded her head in understanding. She was a little flushed herself.

Now _that_ was an awkward conversation, especially since both of them were mainly involved. Silence filled the room as both of them wished to end the topic. Only Tsunade's soft snoring was heard in the office.

"Sakura-chan." Naruto called softly after a while.

"Yes?" Sakura responded.

"Do you think Hinata-chan is…is afraid of me?"

Sakura was taken aback by that question. She couldn't contain her laughter. "Naruto! Don't be silly!" she said in between laughs. "Why would she be afraid of you? That's the least thing you would expect from her when it comes to you!"

Sakura's laughter echoed the room but Naruto didn't seem to find it amusing as she did, if his expression was any indication of that. After a few moments, the pink-haired kunoichi's laughter gradually faded and she noticed Naruto's expression. Her face held confusion and worry.

"Naruto?" Sakura muttered.

"Hinata-chan she…seems scared of me for some reason. I don't know why. I attempted on asking her, but I can't bring myself to do it." Naruto said with voice filled with sadness.

"…why?"

"Because…" he began. "Every time I approach her, she would look like she wants to run away from me."

Sakura could only stare and listen to Naruto. Times like these were rare when it comes to him. He never shares his problems to anyone besides Iruka, the teacher closest to him when they were still students in the academy.

"Did I do something to her that made her…like that? If I did, I couldn't recall what it is. Every day it felt like she's growing further and further apart from me."

"Naruto" Sakura gently called.

The blond slowly raised his head to look at his teammate.

"You really do love Hinata…don't you?" she said with a warm smile on her lips.

Naruto's eyes widened but he immediately smiled, though there was a hint of sadness in it. "Yeah…I do."

* * *

"Hinata, are you ok?" Tenten asked her friend beside her. They were at the Hyuuga compound waiting for Neji to come back home. At least, Tenten was waiting. Hinata was just there to accompany her.

"Yes, I'm fine." Hinata smiled.

But Tenten doubted it. "Are you sure? You look like you were bothered about something."

"Tenten-san, I'm sure." Hinata reassured the brunette.

There was a moment of silence as they both sat outside the house enjoying the view of the garden.

"_Hinata has really changed."_ Tenten thought as she looked at Hinata who had an emotionless face on. Her eyes looked so dull. But beneath the dullness, Tenten can imagine those eyes filled with melancholy.

"Hinata" Tenten sighed as she called. "Don't you miss laughing?"

"Eh?" Hinata was surprised and confused at what Tenten meant.

"You may tell me anything, as what I always tell you. It won't be a bother to me." The brunette said with a smile. She was looking at Hinata with the hopes of making her share her problems. Though Tenten already knows the fact that Hinata can't show expressions she used to be able to, she doesn't want the heiress to be pressured in sharing what she doesn't want to.

"But Tenten-san, I told you I'm fine." Hinata said.

"Well, I think otherwise." Tenten said. "Please, Hinata. Just tell me. I'm your friend, right?"

Hinata didn't answer for a while due to shock and confusion. What was Tenten trying to do? "O-f course you're my friend, Tenten-san. But what do you want me to tell you?" she reluctantly asked.

"Your problems."

The heiress stared wide-eyed at her. "My problems?"

The brunette nodded her head in confirmation. "What was bothering you just now, Hinata?" she gently asked.

Hinata didn't say anything for a while as a weak smile formed on her lips. "Tenten-san, have you perhaps already noticed I'm faking it when I smile?"

It was Tenten's turn to be shocked. "Huh?!" she exclaimed.

Hinata bowed her head low and stared at the ground. "Someone told me they noticed."

"_Is it one of her admirers who said so?"_ Tenten thought. _"No…couldn't be. They're way too oblivious to notice anything. Then who?"_

Hinata was now looking at the brunette with a blank expression. She was waiting for her to respond.

"T-the truth is, Hinata, I –"

"Hinata-sama, someone is looking for you." A Hyuuga member of a branch family said, interrupting Tenten to what she was about to say.

"Send them in." Hinata ordered in her soft voice.

The Hyuuga member nodded his head and bowed before walking away. After a moment, he came back with someone following him from behind.

"Hi, Hinata and Tenten!" a pink-haired girl greeted the two with a smile.

"Sakura? What are you doing here?" Tenten asked with surprise upon seeing the newly-arrived guest. _"This might be a little awkward with Hinata…"_ she thought while glancing over Hinata.

However, the heiress seemed to be dealing with the situation quite well. "Sakura-san, is there something you need?" she asked with a smile.

"Actually, I have." Sakura answered as she tried to remember what she was there for. "Naruto wishes for you to come to his office. He's in need of help with his work, as usual."

"Hinata again?!" Tenten exclaimed. "Sakura, you're always the one helping him, right? Why don't you do it?"

"If I can, I would. But I'm badly needed at the medical center. Shizune-san's asking for my assistance. Next to me, Hinata is the one willing to do the job in helping Naruto. Right, Hinata?" Sakura smiled at the heiress.

Hinata reluctantly nodded.

"Great! Go there as soon as you're ready." Sakura said. "Well, I'll be off then." With a wave of her hand, Sakura turned on her heel and walked away.

"Hinata, you can't just put up with this! It's his work anyway, leave him be!" Tenten said in an angry tone to Hinata who was preparing to leave.

"It's okay, Tenten-san. As long as I can be of any help, I'll do it." Hinata said to the brunette. "Besides, Naruto-kun's the Hokage. I can't refuse."

After Hinata said that, Tenten watched her leave. It pained her to see Hinata like this. Having to keep seeing someone who broke your heart sure is painful. She was sure she's suffering deep down. But what can she do when Hinata won't even tell her what's wrong?

* * *

"Enter." Naruto said as a knock was heard on the door to his office. The door opened and revealed Hinata who was smiling at him. "Hinata-chan, you're here!" he beamed.

"Naruto-kun, what do I have to do today?" Hinata asked after she closed the door behind her.

"Eh? What do you mean?" Naruto asked in a surprised tone.

"Sakura-san told me you needed help." Hinata explained while a bit confused as to why Naruto appeared shocked.

"She did?!" Naruto exclaimed in skepticism. "I was finished with my work earlier. She helped me with it."

"Then…"

"What was Sakura-chan trying to do?" Naruto whispered to himself.

"Excuse me?" Hinata asked as she heard him say something.

"Eh?! U-uh, no…i-it's nothing." Naruto stammered.

"If you don't need me for anything, I could take my leave if you want to." Hinata said.

"N-no, it's okay! I mean…don't leave." He said as he lowered his head to stare at his desk. "I also have something I wanted to talk to you about. So please…listen to me?" Naruto pleaded.

"Okay." Hinata agreed, although she was a bit hesitant.

Naruto smiled. "Thank you, Hinata-chan. Sit down first." He said as he gestured to the seat in front of the table.

Hinata did as she was told and sat down. "What is it, Naruto-kun?"

"You know…" he began awkwardly while his eyes roamed around the room except to Hinata. "Maybe it's just me but I just want to confirm it." Suddenly, he faced Hinata across him with a serious look on his face. "Hinata-chan, are you afraid of me?"

"E-eh?" Hinata seemed startled by this.

"Are you?" he asked again.

Hinata didn't know what to say. Was she afraid of Naruto? Did she look like she was scared?

"I-I…" she tried to talk. All of a sudden, Gaara's words two days ago flashed in her mind.

"_I noticed you acted unusual when I told Naruto we call each other without honorifics. Then when he wanted to know what happened last night, you looked upset…and disappointed. Why are you upset…Hinata?"_

She looked upset? She looked scared? Why do people around her notice things she can't? And she was supposed to be unable to show her emotions.

"Hinata-chan, did I do something to make you scared of me? Did I hurt you?" Naruto carefully asked. Worry was evident on his face.

Hurt? Yes, he did. Naruto did hurt her feelings. His hurting her made her the way she is now…

"_You look like an emotionless doll."_

…a girl who can't show her deep emotions to others but herself. And because she was hurt… because she…was hurt…

Hinata's eyes widened in realization.

…she'd be a _fool_ to love again.

Hinata's gaze was on Naruto. She wasn't scared of him…she was scared of herself. Because the slightest advancement Naruto makes, she knows she won't have the confidence to stand on her resolve, her decision never to love again.

And that was why she forgot how she _felt_ when she loved, the feeling of being in love. She was barricading her heart, her feelings…and all because she was scared to experience love once more.

"Naruto-kun, I'm not afraid of you." Hinata smiled. She finally understood. Her questions were finally answered. "If I looked scared, that was because I was just…startled."

Naruto's worried look turned to hopeful. "Really, Hinata-chan?" he unconsciously stood up.

Hinata's smile was still there when she nodded her head in confirmation.

Naruto smiled; relieved of the fact Hinata wasn't scared of him. He couldn't contain his happiness that he jumped over his table and pulled Hinata into a tight hug as she was forced on her feet.

Hinata immediately stiffened, her eyes widened and her mouth opened. Her mind was sending her warnings and she could mentally hear alarms wailing inside her head. She began raising her hands to push Naruto away from her.

"I'm glad." Naruto's voice seemed to quiver.

Hinata's hands stopped short in their tracks. Was he…_crying_? "Naruto…-kun?" she hesitantly called. Her shoulder where Naruto's head rested began to feel wet. _"So he was crying." _Hinata thought. Unconsciously, her hands that were supposed to push him away went around Naruto's waist and hugged him back.

"I was beginning to think you're scared of me." He sniffed. "I don't want that. I don't want anyone being scared of me. I hate that feeling I used to feel in the past. And I don't want to experience it again" his hold around her tightened.

Naruto was the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki. And Hinata knew a jinchuuriki's life wasn't easy. Back when he was still so young, Naruto was always hated by everyone. Apart from that, they were scared of him, of the demon inside him. That's why his childhood wasn't a memorable one and definitely _not_ a normal one.

"Hinata-chan, you're the last person I wanted to be afraid of me." He murmured against her neck.

"…Naruto-kun." Hinata's face began to heat up.

"I love you, Hinata."

Realization struck her. Hinata immediately released her hold and pushed Naruto. It wasn't a forceful one, but it was enough to make him release her.

Before Naruto could say anything, Hinata beat him to it. "I have to go." As soon as she said that, she left the office straight away leaving Naruto standing on his office alone with a confused expression on his face.

* * *

Back at the Hyuuga compound, Neji and Tenten were together standing just in front of the gate. "Ah! There she is." Tenten said to Neji beside her as she pointed a finger to Hinata's direction. "Welcome back, Hina–" she was cut off as Hinata just swiftly passed by her as if hearing or seeing nothing. "–ta?"

"Did something happen?" Neji asked the confused brunette.

"I have no idea." Tenten barely let out as her attention was still on the retreating figure of Hinata.

* * *

"_I love you, Hinata."_

No…

"_I love you, Hinata."_

Stop…

"_I love you, Hinata."_

Stop it!

"…_Hinata"_

Why? Why can't she stop thinking about it?! Why did she let Naruto hug her? Why did she even hug him back?! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid Hinata! What will she do now…now that she could hear her resolve dissolving? Why was her heart beating so fast at just that one sentence?! Why was that same scene replaying in her mind?!

Hinata flopped down her bed as soon as she entered her room. She buried her head to her pillow and groaned. She was sure her face was now red as a tomato. She can feel it, her face heating up more and more as the second goes by.

"I don't love him anymore…" Hinata muttered to herself. "Not anymore…"

* * *

"Did you enjoy her company?" Sakura slyly grinned at the blond ninja who was slouching on his chair back at the Hokage's office.

"Yeah, I did." Naruto answered. His attention was somewhere else when he remembered what Sakura did. "Hold on. What were you trying to do, Sakura-chan?!" he exclaimed giving the pink-haired kunoichi his full attention.

Sakura's grin widened. "Obviously trying to lend you a hand." She said rather proudly.

"If you were, why didn't you just tell me?"

She fixed Naruto a piercing glare. "If I told you what I would do, what would you say?" her voice was menacing. She didn't wait anymore for Naruto to respond. "You would say: 'No, Sakura-chan. That will only freak Hinata-chan more'" she said as she mockingly mimicked Naruto.

"How are you so sure I would say that?" Naruto tried to counter.

"Naruto! We've been on the same team since we were kids! I know what you're thinking!" Sakura shouted.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you only cared what Sasuke thinks." Naruto said.

"Wha– Th-that was in the past…" Sakura said with a little blush. "You know…until I realized I liked you."

"Yeah, I know." Naruto said. "But what you did, Sakura-chan, I thank you for that." He said with a warm smile.

Sakura, in turn, smiled back. "You're welcome."

There was silence in the room before Sakura talked again. "So? Tell me what happened!" she squealed with excitement.

"Well…" Naruto grinned. "She said she wasn't afraid of me!"

Sakura beamed. "Then? What happened after that?"

"I hugged her afterwards. I was so happy I even cried." Naruto tried to hide his blush with a chuckle. "Ah…how embarrassing!"

"Hinata surely doesn't mind!" Sakura giggled at Naruto's reaction.

"Yeah…to think she hugged me back." Naruto scratched the back of his head with a silly look on his face. "I guess I just got carried away with the moment when I told her I…" he trailed off as his blush deepened.

"Told her what?" Sakura curiously asked.

"I told her I love her." Naruto whispered but was clearly heard by Sakura.

"And? What did she tell you?"

"She has to go."

"I see. Wait, _what?_" Sakura asked in disbelief.

"It's okay. I guess Hinata-chan's just being shy." Naruto smiled.

"Well, for now," Sakura began. "I'm glad your misunderstanding's been cleared."

* * *

The next morning came. Hinata was up early but she wasn't in any mood today. She spent her time yesterday doing nothing but to think about Naruto's words over and over again while convincing herself she has no feelings for him. Fortunately, it worked. And why won't it be? She was a hundred percent sure she has no feelings left for him. It has been a very long time. Things were just going too fast for her that's why it caught her off guard. Nothing special at all, nothing special.

Hinata sighed. Maybe a mission would be nice and sufficient for her to forget these things. So after she ate breakfast with her family, she immediately went to Kiba and Shino's houses.

Once the team was complete, they went straight to the Hokage's tower for their mission. She really didn't want to face Naruto just yet, but she got no other option if she _really_ wants to forget thinking of things involving him.

As Team Eight was already in front of the Hokage office's door, they wasted no time in knocking. They heard Naruto's voice permitting them to enter.

"Yo, Naruto! We're here to have our mission." Kiba said after the three of them completely stepped in the room.

"Great timing! I just got one fitting for you three." The blond Hokage grinned. "It's in Sunagakure."

"Sunagakure?" the three of them echoed.

"What kind of mission?" Kiba asked.

"Hmm…Let's see." Naruto grabbed a scroll among the pile that was placed on his desk. He quickly unrolled it and skimmed the content with his eyes. "Ah, here it is. It says here that our assistance is needed to track the location of a certain clan. It seems this clan is special for their bloodline limit. They're surprisingly not well-known."

"A clan, huh? Okay, you got it. We're leaving for Suna as soon as possible." Kiba said with a smirk.

"Great!" Naruto grinned. "Good luck on you guys."

With a nod, Kiba faced his teammates. "Shino, Hinata." He said with a confident look. "Let's go!"

Both Hinata and Shino nodded their heads and turned to leave with Kiba and Akamaru.

"Hinata-chan, wait!" Naruto called out.

Hinata immediately stiffened. She slowly turned her head to Naruto who was already in front of her.

An awkward laugh was heard from Kiba followed by a seemingly shy sound from Akamaru. "Uh…I guess we better give you two some room to talk." Kiba said with a sly grin as he dragged Shino out of the room. Akamaru followed behind them.

As soon as they were gone, Naruto's blue eyes focused on Hinata's pale ones. A warm smile was on his lips. "Return safely, Hinata-chan."

Hinata could feel her face starting to heat up. Naruto's smile was affecting her in a strange way. She was starting to panic. And so, in order for Naruto not to notice her deepening blush, she quickly nodded her head and left the office.

Naruto watched her leave, his smile never leaving his face. Though it was faint, he didn't miss the coloring of her cheeks. This made his smile widen.

* * *

"This clan's suspicious. In fact, it's really weird." Temari muttered as her eyes skimmed through the contents of a scroll. "Don't you think so, Gaara?" she turned to face her silent brother who was seated behind his table at the Kazekage's office. He was reading through several scrolls with his brows slightly furrowed. He didn't even mind responding to his sister's question.

"How come we never heard of this type of clan? What's going on?" Temari rhetorically asked.

"Temari," Gaara called as he faced the blonde kunoichi with a stoic face. "Arrange me a meeting with the council…immediately"

* * *

**A/N: I forgot to write my thanks to those readers who reviewed chapter 5. Thank you especially to ****Jester Hachi****, who kept reviewing my work. Thank you so much! I hope you guys would still continue to enjoy reading my work.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 8**

Trees to trees, branches to branches, the rustling of bushes and leaves…Team Eight was already on their way to Sunagakure for their mission.

"You know, it's been bothering me for a while now." Kiba said breaking the silence. "Why should we track the location of this clan? I mean, they make it sound like they don't stay put at all."

"I agree." Shino responded. "Clans with strong bloodline limit are usually known to other countries. But on what Naruto said, they're the opposite."

Kiba gave Hinata a quick glance. "Yeah, he did say that they're not well-known. Maybe they're not as powerful as Hinata's clan?"

"I doubt that." Shino said. "Clans with bloodline limit are rare. So most, if not all, are famous and have already been heard of. Am I right, Hinata?"

"Yes, Shino-kun. Lack in power is hardly the case of it not being known." Hinata said. " It most probably is kept a..."

"Secret." Hinata and Shino said at the same time.

"Secret?" Kiba echoed.

"I'm not sure about this but it's possible that only a selected few knows about this clan." Hinata explained.

"What kind of clan is that?!" Kiba exclaimed in surprise and was followed by Akamaru's bark. "Why are they kept a secret to us?"

"We'll know once we get there." Shino said.

* * *

A huge room inside the Kazekage tower was filled with people seated on a large round table. A meeting was being held.

"The girl's life is already stabled. We have already finished interrogating her." One of them said. He wore a headgear with a hanging white cloth, covering half of his face. His expression was serious.

"And what did she say, Baki?" one of the elders present in the room asked.

"She said she was kidnapped by a group of bandits while she was travelling with her clan." Baki answered.

"Clan? From what clan is she?" another elder asked.

"Naoshi Clan"

Suddenly, there was silence in the room. Some of the elders shifted from their seat uncomfortably while some tried to clear their throat.

Gaara, who was silently listening and observing, immediately asked, "Do you, perhaps, have knowledge about this clan? Because I've never heard of such a name before."

All eyes were on the elders who still remained quiet. Silent questions added up to the tension gradually filling the atmosphere.

Then, a clearing of someone's throat was heard. "Yes, we have heard of the Naoshi clan." The head of the elders said.

Gasps and whispers were immediately heard inside the room.

"Since the five great countries have already had the ninja alliance, there won't be a problem about letting you know of this."

Gaara slightly nodded his head.

"The Naoshi clan is not particularly a ninja clan. They're known as healers or a group of shamans. Their ability made them prone to harm. Kidnapping and death are one of them." The elder explained.

"What is their ability?" Temari asked.

"Their blood can heal anything. One drop of it is more than enough to heal any wounds and illnesses.

"Their blood?" Kankuro echoed in surprise.

"And that's why they're in hiding." Gaara said in realization.

"Yes." Another elder confirmed. "Because of their bloodline limit, many wanted to acquire their ability to heal. Many Naoshi members had already died drained away of their blood. And that's why Suna offered security for the Naoshi clan."

"Security? Why would we do that when they're not from our village?" Temari asked.

"The second Kazekage was acquainted with the clan. They were the one who saved him from his disease. So, in return, he offered them protection. He didn't want to put them into more danger and so kept it a secret among the council and a few other Sand ninjas. He sent the best men of Suna to guard them wherever they go. They travel in small groups and they move from one location to another every now and then, together with a Sand ninja as their guard, to avoid being tracked down by enemies who are after for their blood."

"They travel in small groups? You mean there are a lot of Naoshi members scattered around several countries?" Kankuro asked.

The elder nodded in response. "After what the second Kazekage had done, the killings of their members had gradually died down. Nobody ever mentioned the Naoshi clan again and their existence was long forgotten."

"But now," Gaara said. "It seems they're being hunted down again."

* * *

"How are you feeling?" a female medic Sand ninja asked. She was in a room inside the medical center of Suna with a patient about Temari's age.

A blue-eyed girl with long black hair smiled. "I've long been fine. I'm very fortunate I get to live my life longer than I expected." She answered.

"Don't be like that." The medic said with a smile.

The girl laughed softly. "But it's true." She said.

The opening of the door to the room was heard and three people came in.

"How is the girl?" Temari asked the medic.

"She said she's already fine." The medic answered. Her head turned to the one beside Temari. "Kazekage-sama, do you need something?"

Gaara, with his arms crossed, only nodded his head.

"We three came to check up on the girl." Temari answered for her brother.

The look of confusion crossed the medic's face. "Um…three?" she hesitantly asked.

Temari's head quickly turned towards where Kankuro was supposed to be standing only to find him gone. Her brows immediately furrowed. "Yes…" Temari said in between grinded teeth. "_Three._" She glared daggers at the puppeteer's back as soon as she spotted him beside the Naoshi.

"My, what beautiful eyes you have. I was captivated from the very first time I laid my eyes on you." Kankuro flirted. His large hand was already holding the girl's small one.

"Uh…thank you?" she awkwardly said.

A loud slap echoed inside the room followed by a loud scream.

"Oi! We didn't come here for that, Kankuro." Temari said as she looked at her brother who was now rolling on the ground trying to soothe the pain at the back of his head. "Gaara, I'll talk to her first." She said to the red-head who nodded his head in agreement.

"You're a Naoshi, right? What's your name?" Temari asked the girl who was seated on the hospital bed looking at Kankuro with worry.

The girl looked up and faced Temari. "I'm Arima." She answered.

"Arima, huh?" Temari muttered. "One of our ninjas interrogated you earlier. You said you were kidnapped."

"Yes, I did." Arima confirmed.

"When one of our ninjas who watch the Suna entrance found you, they said a group of men was attacking you. They were carrying a container with them. Were they trying to get your blood?"

Arima shifted uncomfortably. "Y-yes."

"What did they tell you when you were captured?" Temari asked.

"Th-they said that if I don't willingly come with them, they'll kill the other remaining members of my clan who were travelling with me at that time."

"What happened to the Sand ninja who guards you?"

"He's with the other members of my clan." Arima said. "B-but it's not his fault that I was captured! My kidnappers were just too strong for him and none of my clan knows how to fight."

"How did they know you were a Naoshi?"

"We have our marks behind our neck. All Naoshi gets it the first thing we're born." Arima explained as she turned around and showed her mark. It looked like a teardrop. "Apparently, those who captured me know where we were. But I don't know how they do it."

Temari nodded her head in understanding. "Do you know who's behind your capture?"

Arima slowly shook her head. "Unfortunately, no. There were countless of times already when our lives were in danger. It's a good thing we have someone from here guarding us."

"I see" Temari muttered. "You were lucky that those who captured you lead you to a place near the Sand village. The watchers were able to sense you in danger and were able to come to your rescue."

"Yes." Arima agreed. "That's why I'm very thankful to all of you for taking me in. And, of course, for saving my life yesterday." she smiled.

"You should thank the Kazekage. He was the one who permitted all of this." Temari said gesturing to Gaara beside her. She didn't bother smiling back.

"Oh…is that so?" Arima said as she looked at Gaara with a faint blush on her cheeks. "Th-then, I thank you, Kazekage-sama."

Gaara just nodded. He turned his head to face Temari. "We should go."

"Right." Temari agreed. Then, she looked down to face her other brother who was just lying on the floor flat on his face. "Kankuro, get up." She said.

Kankuro grunted in response.

* * *

Three days have already passed with Hinata, Shino, Kiba and Akamaru making their way towards the Sand village.

"Finally!" Kiba exclaimed and was followed by Akamaru's bark. Team Eight have finally arrived and were now standing in front of Sunagakure's entrance passageway.

"Who goes there?" a Sand ninja watch called out to them. Kiba, Shino and Hinata all looked as the Sand ninja approached them. "Konoha ninjas, state your business."

Kiba just gave him a scroll from his kunai pouch.

The Sand ninja unrolled the scroll and quickly read the contents. Then, he smiled. "You may enter."

Team Eight just nodded their heads and proceeded. It was a hot weather, unlike in Konoha. There were sands everywhere and the color of the buildings was dull. The villagers busy in the streets wore lots of layers of cloth for their clothing. There wasn't much sight-to-see in Suna but the look on the people living there suggests otherwise.

When Kiba, Shino and Hinata entered the Sand village, Temari and Kankuro came to greet them.

"Oh, it's Hinata-chan!" Kankuro exclaimed. "Can't get enough of me, can you?" he smirked.

"Don't mind my idiot brother. Welcome to Suna, Hinata." Temari said with a warm smile.

"Hey," Kiba said to Shino with a grumpy look on his face. "Is it just me or are we being completely ignored by these two?"

"Kiba," Shino began. "Now you've understood how I feel every time I'm ignored."

"Come on. Let's go to the Kazekage's office to announce your arrival." Temari said grabbing Hinata by the hand.

Kankuro just watched the two girls go. As soon as they were out of sight, he turned his head towards Kiba and Shino. "You guys were here, too?" he said, seemingly surprised. "Welcome to Suna, then." Kankuro wearily said.

Anger was evident on Kiba's face. "Your greeting's so half-assed! Do it properly!"

* * *

"Gaara, the Konoha ninjas have arrived." Temari said as soon as she opened the door to the Kazekage's office.

Gaara was busy reading through several scrolls and didn't bother to look up. "Send them in." he said in a monotone.

"Uh…" Temari began. "I left the other two ninjas to Kankuro. I just brought one with me...instinctively." She said as she gave Hinata a quick glance behind the door. "Should I send them in later after they all get here?"

"No, let them come in, whoever's with you. You go and get Kankuro." He answered.

"Okay." Temari said as she went outside the office. "Gaara wants you to come in. I'll just go and get Kankuro and your teammates." She said to Hinata.

"I understand." Hinata said and smiled. "Thank you, Temari-san."

"I'll be back." The blonde kunoichi said with a smile.

Hinata watched Temari walk away before turning her attention to the door. She gently knocked on it.

"Enter."

It's Gaara's voice, she immediately recognized. She turned the knob and slowly opened the door. "Good morning…Kazekage-sama." She said in a soft voice as she entered the room.

Gaara was writing something when his pen abruptly stopped as he heard her greet. His head slowly raised and he looked at her with his expressionless face. "Hinata." He said with a hint of surprise in his voice.

"Should I still call you 'Gaara' or should I stick with 'Kazekage-sama' since it's your village I'm in?" Hinata asked with a smile.

"Call me Gaara, regardless of the place." He responded. "And didn't I tell you to stop faking your smile?"

Hinata immediately dropped her smile. No other emotion was clear on her face. "I'm sorry, I forgot about that. I guess I do that out of habit." She said.

There was a moment of silence between them. Gaara didn't go back on continuing with what he was doing. He just looked at Hinata. Hinata, on the other hand, just stood there staring back at him.

"Sit down." Gaara said in a while breaking the eye contact and silence as he gestured a seat in front of his table. It was the only chair in the huge room besides the one he was sitting on.

"Thank you." Hinata said as she sat down.

Gaara went on writing again. "You're here to assist us in finding the location of a clan, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then, we'll wait for the others before I brief you of your mission."

"Okay." Hinata said.

Silence filled the atmosphere once more.

"Do you need some help?" Hinata asked after a while.

"I can't let a guest help with my work." Gaara answered.

"But I don't mind."

Gaara didn't say anything for a second. "Does Naruto ask you to help him?" he guessed.

"Yes." Hinata nodded. "He usually does."

"Naruto isn't the type to be able to deal with paperwork anyway. So, I wouldn't be surprised."

_Oh great…w_hy were they talking about _him_ again? Hinata came there to forget, not to be reminded. Maybe Suna wasn't really the right place to come to.

A knock on the door was heard.

"Enter." Gaara said.

The door opened and someone's head slowly peeked behind it.

"K-kazekage-sama?" a voice squeaked.

Gaara raised his head to look at who was calling. "Do you need something?" he asked in a monotone. It was Arima.

"Um…" Arima shyly entered the room. "I…I" she stammered. The blush on her face was very clear. When Arima spotted Hinata sitting in front of the table, her expression turned to shock. "I-I'm sorry. I d-d-didn't know y-you had a g-guest, K-kazekage-sama. I sh-should go." She said as she turned to leave.

Somehow, Hinata was reminded of her old self. She used to stutter like that. And now she couldn't help but smile with real amusement showing in her eyes. "Wait." She called to Arima who immediately stopped. "Don't leave. Gaara and I weren't talking anyway so you aren't interrupting anything."

"Y-yes." Arima said as she turned around again to face Gaara. The blush never left her face. "I j-just want t-to g-give Kazekage-sama s-s-something."

"What is it?" Gaara asked as he went back to what he was doing.

"U-um…" Arima began. "P-please t-take th-th-this!" she exclaimed as she bowed low. Her hands that were extended to Gaara were holding something.

Gaara stood up and went around the table to receive what Arima wanted to give him. Hinata remained silent in her seat and watched.

"What is this?" Gaara asked while examining a small bottle in his hands.

"I asked a m-medic n-ninja t-to get it. I-it's m-my blood." Arima shyly said while fidgeting since Gaara was standing close in front of her.

"Blood?" Hinata echoed. Surprise was in her voice.

Gaara turned his head to look at Hinata seated behind him. She was looking back at him with a confused look on her face.

"Your mission involves your team to track down the whereabouts of her clan." Gaara said to Hinata.

"Is she perhaps…a Naoshi?" Hinata asked.

Gaara's eyes widened a fraction. "Yes. You know them?"

"I always thought they were a myth." Hinata said with an expressionless face. "I used to read about them in scrolls back in our library. It is said that their blood can heal anything." She said as she looked at the small container in Gaara's hand.

"Naoshi-san, I can't accept this." Gaara said to Arima.

"W-why not?" Arima asked with disappointment. "M-my blood can come in h-handy."

Gaara shook his head. "It's not me who would need this. It would be Hinata and the others who would do the mission."

"H-hinata?"

Gaara gestured to Hinata behind him.

Hinata smiled as Arima looked at her. "My name's Hyuuga Hinata." She said as she stood beside Gaara.

"I-I'm Naoshi Arima. P-please c-call me Arima."

"Okay, Arima-san." Hinata said. "Please call me Hinata"

"H-hinata-san." Arima shyly called. "Y-you and K-kazekage-sama s-seemed c-c-close."

Hinata wasn't able to answer. She just stared at Gaara beside her who was also looking back at her.

"I c-can't h-help b-but notice h-how y-you're c-calling each o-o-other." Arima fidgeted. "I-I'm sorry I-it's n-none of m-my business!" she quickly said.

Hinata was about to say something when she was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Enter." Gaara said.

The door immediately opened and revealed Temari, Kankuro, Kiba, Shino and Akamaru.

"What happened? You're all standing up." Kankuro said before spotting Arima in the room. "Oh! Hello, Arima-chan! What brings you here?" he exclaimed as he rushed to Arima's side.

"I just came to give Kazekage-sama something." Arima replied. Her stuttering was gone.

"Do you have something for me?" Kankuro asked with an expectant smile.

"I'm sorry but I don't have any." Arima said.

Kankuro's face immediately fell. But that was before he looked at Hinata. "Hinata-chan! You look so lovely today!" the puppeteer dashed to hug Hinata.

Kiba, Akamaru and Shino immediately blocked Kankuro's way.

"Will you stop chasing after Hinata?!" Kiba shouted angrily. Akamaru beside him was growling at Kankuro

"Kankuro, you really need to stop chasing a girl after another…especially when they're in the same room." Temari sighed. "They would mistake you for a pervert."

"Why don't we all just get to work?" Shino said.

"Right." Temari agreed. "Since Arima is already here, there won't be any more delays in proceeding."

Without a word, Gaara sat back down on his chair. He immediately looked for a specific scroll on his desk. Temari and the others stood there waiting for him.

"The other Sand ninjas including Temari and Kankuro who would be with you in this mission already knew about this." Gaara said addressing specifically to Kiba, Shino and Hinata. He took a scroll from the pile and unrolled it. "As what I have sent word to Konoha, your mission is to track down the location of the Naoshi clan's current location."

"Naoshi clan?" Kiba echoed.

Gaara explained everything about the Naoshi clan for a while. After he finished, he introduced Arima to Kiba's team.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Naoshi Arima." Arima said with a bow.

"So, we're supposed to find her group and not just _any_ Naoshi members we can find?" Kiba asked as he referred to Arima.

Gaara nodded his head. "Return her safely to her clan she's with so that they would know she's alive."

"Why did you just ask Konoha for this? You could have just sent word to the other villages. We could use some more help." Kiba said.

"Hey, don't just question the actions of our Kazekage." Temari interjected. "You know why he only wanted Konoha to assist? Because he thinks you guys are more than enough to accomplish this mission."

"I see." Kiba said with a nod. Then, he turned to face Arima. "Yo! Arima, right? I'm Kiba." He said. "And this is Akamaru." He patted Akamaru's head who barked after being introduced.

Arima smiled. "Nice to meet you, Kiba-san and Akamaru-san."

"That is Shino." Kiba pointed his thumb to Shino behind him.

"Nice to meet you, Shino-san." Arima said. Her smile never leaving her face.

Shino nodded in response.

"And this is Hinata." Kiba gestured to Hinata beside him.

"Yes, we have already introduced each other." Arima said.

"Oh, is that so?" Kiba asked as he looked at Hinata who nodded her head in confirmation.

"Well then," Temari began. "When are we going to start, Gaara?"

"Tomorrow. Let the Konoha guests take their rest for today." Gaara answered.

"Okay." Temari said. "Hinata, let me take you to a nice inn." She said to the heiress as she grabbed her hand and turned to leave the office.

"Hey, no fair! I want to be the one to take her!" Kankuro shouted at Temari.

"Do you hear something, Hinata? It sounds like a flirt trying to hit on you." Temari mocked.

"Hey," Kiba said to Shino as the three were gone from the room. "We're being ignored again."

* * *

"Hinata, you want to have a tour with me around Suna?" Temari asked Hinata after they got a room in an inn. Temari forcibly drove Kankuro away.

"I'd love to, Temari-san." Hinata answered with a smile.

"Great! Let's go!" Temari said excitedly. As the two of them were leaving the inn, they met Kiba, Akamaru and Shino at the entrance.

"Kiba-kun, Shino-kun, I'm going out for a while." Hinata said to them.

"Okay." Kiba said and looked at Temari. "Try and not drag her around too much."

"Hmph, I know what I'm doing." Temari answered with a cold stare. With that, she and Hinata left the inn. They walked alongside each other in the streets. "So, where do you want to go first?" Temari asked.

Hinata thought for a moment. "I don't really have anything in mind." She answered.

"Then in that case, we'll go anywhere. I'll show you some places where you could eat, places where you can kill time and whatnot." Temari eagerly said.

"Well, I'm glad you're enjoying this, Temari-san." Hinata said.

The blonde girl grinned. "I'm just happy that Naruto chose your team to be sent here. I get to spend my time with you, Hinata."

Hinata smiled. Her eyes were gleaming making Temari freeze in her spot as she looked at her.

"You…smiled." Temari murmured. Her face looked astounded.

"Eh?" Hinata asked, confused.

"Hinata, you just smiled." Temari repeated a little louder.

"Y-yes, I did. Don't I always?"

"Yeah, you do. But this one's different. I mean, you _truly_ smiled."

"I…did?" Hinata asked, quite unsure.

Temari nodded her head. "You're eyes don't just sparkle like that."

Hinata fell silent. Her head was lowered and she was looking at the ground.

"Hinata? What's wrong?" Temari warily asked.

"Temari-san," she started with a quiet voice. "So you also knew…that I fake my smile."

Temari was taken aback. "Yeah…I knew about it." She admitted. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you." Temari felt so guilty that she couldn't bear to look at the heiress.

"It's okay." Hinata said. "Gaara told me it was obvious anyway."

Temari stared at Hinata with a shocked look on her face. "Gaara…told you?"

Hinata nodded.

"Gaara who? The Kazekage? My brother? The emotionless red-head? _That_ Gaara?" Temari asked as if there was another person she knew whose name was Gaara.

If Hinata could laugh, she would've done so already. But unfortunately, she can't so she just nodded her head.

Temari couldn't believe it! Gaara isn't the type of person who would easily tell someone his opinion about them. Yet, he did so with Hinata! What's going on with these two? First, they both meet up by "coincidence" twice in a row. Then, they call each other's names without using honorifics. Next, Gaara tells Hinata of his opinion about her which he never did so to other people…not even to her and Kankuro! And what will be next? The next time she sees them both they would be holding each other's hands and kissing each other senseless? Pssh! Yeah right, get real!

_Wait…_

Temari smirked to herself. That's not exactly a bad idea. In fact, it's the greatest idea she has ever come up with! She vowed to herself she would help Hinata of her predicament in any way she can. But she's been wondering for a long time now on how she would be able to do so. And now…_this _is her answer.

Hinata lost the ability to show her emotions in front of other people ever since she was heartbroken. What other way could be done to help her regain her emotions than to let her fall in love again? And of course not to that bastard Hokage but to her stoic brother! Thinking about it, Gaara once asked Temari the feeling of falling in love. So if she could just let him fall for Hinata, she would be doing her brother a favor of answering his questions by making him experience falling in love with someone.

"Temari-san?" Hinata called to her.

"Yes?" Temari responded with a sly grin on her face.

"Shall we go?"

"Yeah, let's go!" Temari exclaimed, her grin still there, as she and Hinata began with their tour.

Temari was proud of her plan. It's like killing two birds with one stone! She's more than glad in playing cupid for the two people important to her.

And believe me; she'll make one hell of a cupid…

* * *

**A/N: End of chapter. :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I just want you guys to know that I'm very thankful for the reviews you gave me. It encouraged me to keep on writing. Happy New Year to all! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 9**

The light from the moon gave the village hidden in the sand a faint silvery glow. Bright stars glittered like sparkling rivers in the sky. The wind was cold as much as it's hot during the day. Hinata breathed a contented sigh as she walked alone on the silent streets of Sunagakure. She couldn't sleep no matter how hard she tried and so decided to tire herself from a midnight walk. As she was walking, her conversation with Temari earlier that day came to her mind.

"_Hinata, tell me. How do you find Gaara?" Temari suddenly asked her. They were at a tea house in Suna and were seated at a table eating dango and drinking tea._

_Hinata's face was astounded and confused. "What do you mean?"_

_Temari tried to sound nonchalant. "Well, I already know how you two call each other. I just wanted to know your opinion about him."_

_Hinata nodded her head in understanding. "Gaara is…" she paused to think. "For me, Gaara is an amusing person."_

_Both Temari's eyebrows shot up. "Amusing?" she repeated._

"_Yes."_

"_How?" The blonde kunoichi just couldn't comprehend which part of her brother – her expressionless and cold younger brother is amusing._

_Hinata thought up for an answer to Temari's question. "Well, I find him amusing since the first night we met back in Konoha." She said in a while. "We were talking about the moon that time. I have never met a person who disregarded the moon as beautiful. He was the first."_

_Temari was looking at Hinata as she explained. She watched the heiress smile a real smile. Maybe Hinata hadn't noticed it yet but she was starting to open up, although very slowly. But it was a good start, in Temari's opinion. She wasn't anymore faking her smile. Maybe because Hinata was fully aware that Temari already knew she forces her smile…or used to._

"_Aside from amusing, what else?" the blonde girl asked._

"_What else? Let's see…" Hinata paused to think once more. "He's…hard to understand."_

_Temari nodded her head. It was something she could fully empathize with. Even though Gaara's her sibling, she still doesn't know most of the things going through his head. "And? What else?" she inquired._

_Hinata's smile widened. "He's interesting." She said rather quickly, to Temari's surprise. She didn't even give that one much of a thought._

"_Come again?" the blonde woman wasn't quite sure she heard that right._

"_Gaara is..." Hinata began. "…an interesting person."_

_A mischievous grin crept up on Temari's face. "Interesting, huh?" she said. "Why do you find him interesting, Hinata?"_

"_Um…" Hinata shifted uncomfortably as she realized what she had just told Temari. She didn't know why she got so tensed. It was just Gaara they were talking about. He was just another person. "H-he's got a mysterious and cold demeanor around him. It makes someone wonder what he's thinking."_

"_Hmm…what about you?" Temari asked while slightly gesturing to Hinata._

"_Eh?"_

"_Do you want to know what Gaara's thinking?"_

"_I…I'm not sure." Hinata admitted._

_Temari just stared at the Hyuuga with an unreadable expression, unable to say anything more. Then, suddenly, an idea came to her devious mind. "Actually, Hinata, there is something I want you to know. Gaara, once you look at him, you may think he's an emotionless person. What I'm trying to say is, Gaara is someone who doesn't easily show what he feels. He keeps his emotions inside him. That is one of the many reasons why it's hard for him to gain friends. People tend to misunderstand him because they barely know him. I know this may be asking too much from you, but I'm hoping that you could help him since you two are a bit, if not really, close. I'm hoping you could make him open up to others so the remaining loneliness inside him would cease to exist." _

_There wasn't really any "remaining loneliness". Temari just wanted to exaggerate so her ploy of getting Gaara and Hinata together would work much faster._

_Hinata was just like Gaara, though at the same time they're different. He keeps his emotions while she couldn't show hers. Well, technically, they're the same. "But why me?" Hinata asked. "Aren't you and Kankuro-san closer to Gaara?"_

_Temari was afraid such a shallow excuse wouldn't work. Hinata wasn't dumb and gullible. She immediately tried to think of an excuse to convince her. "Apparently, neither I nor Kankuro can do it. We can't make him at least smile to us how much more make him open up? But since we're siblings and we've been together for a very long time, you can say we understand him without him saying anything. Hinata, I am confident you could make it work for him. He has already done things with you that he has never done before."_

"_Like what?"_

"_He has told you his opinion. Didn't you say that he told you about your smile?"_

_Hinata nodded._

"_Gaara never told anyone his opinions about them since he's someone who doesn't care about people's businesses. Yet he did so with you and that really surprised me. Therefore, it led me to think that you're suitable for this." Temari explained. "So, will you help?" Her green eyes were pleading._

"_If you put it that way, I'll do it." Hinata said, although she wasn't quite sure about it. But since Temari needs her help, she just can't turn her down now, can she?_

"_Yes! Thank you, Hinata!" Temari exclaimed happily. Somehow, it worked after all._

Hinata was supposed to make Gaara open up, huh? In order to do that, she needs to talk to Gaara as often as she could. But once she finished on doing that, what on earth was she supposed to do next?

She sighed. She had no choice but to think about it once she has already done doing it in actual. For now, she should just relax and make herself tired. The wind blew over her which made Hinata hug herself from the cold night air. It was a good thing she wore a jacket before leaving the inn where she was staying.

Everything around her was so quiet and so peaceful when all of a sudden Hinata found herself unable to move. Something was gripping her body. She immediately looked down and gasped as she saw a thick layer of sand enveloping her. Then, a figure landed in front of her.

"It's just you," Gaara said in his monotone. "Hinata." He released her from his sand which automatically went back to the gourd clasped on his back.

"Gaara" Hinata called softly, recognizing him. He must have sensed her presence.

"What are you doing wandering alone in the middle of the night?" Gaara asked. He had his arms crossed.

Hinata must've imagined it but his voice sounded angry. "I couldn't sleep so I was tiring myself out." She answered.

"Didn't you know it's dangerous to wander alone at night? Especially at this time?" his voice was low…_dangerously_ low.

Yup, she wasn't imagining. Gaara was really angry. Did she do something? "Gaara, I can take care of mys–"

"You're a woman! Keep in mind that not every guy looks at you with good intentions!"

Both of them fell silent. They were shocked that Gaara just shouted. Yes…_both_. One would laugh their ass off in disbelief if ever they heard the ever-so-calm Kazekage lost his composure and shouted for some unknown reason.

"What if some guy saw you…" he started in a calm tone, "…and takes advantage of you?"

Hinata just stood there and listened to Gaara talk. Still out of words. She still couldn't believe he was there lecturing her when he was the last person in her mind she would expect a lecturing from. Only one question popped up in her mind: why does he care?

Gaara stopped talking for a second to look at Hinata's reaction. There she was, staring back at him with an indiscernible expression in her face. All he was certain was the confusion present in her eyes. He looked away. "Follow me" he said before turning away.

Follow him? To where? Hinata stood frozen in place. She was indecisive whether or not she would do as she was told. But after she realized it was the Kazekage ordering her to follow, she immediately moved and followed Gaara who patiently waited for her.

They walked in silence, passing by several houses and buildings and turn several corners as they did so. Hinata followed Gaara everywhere he went. But as the second ticked by, Hinata's confusion grew and questions she wanted so badly to ask flooded her mind. It was amazing how the slightest action from Gaara can leave her so confused.

Usually, Gaara welcomes silence more than anything. But now, the silence he's experiencing was a torture to him. The silence between them was awkward and unbearable. Maybe he just wanted to be distracted from what he just said to Hinata earlier which kept replaying in his mind. Why did he shout? He knew himself very well and he's not the type to shout except when he really needs to.

When he felt someone's presence earlier during his night viewing on the Kazekage tower's rooftop, he thought it was an enemy infiltrating since it felt strange and new to him. He was relieved it wasn't an enemy but Hinata instead. At first he was curious as to why she was there but when realization struck him that she was alone, a spark of anger lit up inside him as images of Hinata struggling to get away from someone's grasp flashed in his mind. And before he knew it, he was shouting at her. It was evident on her face that she hadn't expected that from him. Maybe it was as clear on his face that he hadn't expected it either. But that didn't matter. What bothered him was a question: why did he care? True, she could've taken care of herself. She was a ninja after all. He knew that. But he just can't help himself but feel angry and worried for her, though somehow those feelings of his had a mix of possessiveness towards her.

They now entered the Kazekage tower. Gaara continued walking ahead while opening large doors on his way with Hinata following shortly behind him. They walked and turned for what seemed like an eternity before arriving at a certain room.

Hinata looked around and realized they were in a large kitchen room. The place was neat and tidy. Everything was positioned at their respective places. There was a rectangular wooden table with six wooden chairs at the left side of the room while a kitchen counter and cupboards were on the right side. The kitchen looked…well, a kitchen.

Gaara motioned Hinata to a chair for her to sit. She slowly did as she was told while watching Gaara make his way to the counter and grab two cups, his back facing her.

Hinata was silent for a while not knowing what to say until she asked a question she found to be more suitable in that particular situation. "Why are you still awake, Gaara? Aren't you able to have some sleep already?" she softly asked.

The room was silent aside from utensils clinking and the opening of wooden drawers. Hinata wasn't expecting him to answer anyway so she didn't mind the silence.

"I just finished my work. I was just getting some air at the rooftop before going to sleep." His voice was stern when he replied.

"I see" Hinata said with a slight nod, though Gaara can't see it. "Was that when you sensed me?"

Gaara barely nodded. The clinking sound he was making stopped and he turned around holding the two cups in his hands. He went to the table where Hinata was seated and placed a cup in front of her before sitting himself across.

Hinata stared at the steaming cup in front of her. Then, her eyes darted to Gaara who was already sipping his coffee. She took the liberty to ask him, "What's this?"

Gaara slowly settled his cup back on the table and looked at Hinata. "Tea."

So, what he's trying to show here was, he made her follow him all the way to the Kazekage tower and into the kitchen…for a cup of tea?! Hinata could only gape at him.

Gaara immediately felt the need to explain. He did so, but not before sighing. "It's an herbal tea to help you sleep."

Hinata's head nodded in understanding. Then, a faint blush appeared on her cheeks. "Th-thank you." She quietly said and sipped her tea. She was actually touched by what Gaara did for her. He even made it himself. The thoughtful action was…_sweet_. Hinata unconsciously smiled at the thought. She had never considered the Kazekage would be someone who would bother making her tea.

Gaara's eyes stayed on the smiling heiress in front of him. She actually smiled, to his surprise, though he still managed to sustain his emotionless façade. Their first meeting in Konoha suddenly flashed in his mind. Yes, he remembered her smiling with the same gleam in her eyes as that time. Although this time, he got a better view of her.

Hinata knew Gaara was staring at her which made her shift on her seat. Even though she was already used to people looking at her, the feeling with him was different. The intensity he was holding to her was strange and…oddly pleasant. Hinata attempted to just steal a quick glance at Gaara. However, as she did so, she found herself fixing her eyes to his jade ones. It was only then that she noticed that his eyes were enthralling. There wasn't any emotion she can find in them, but that made it so captivating…so _mysterious. _She was so fascinated by it she didn't dare to look away. It took her a minute to realize that she was already staring back at him. But even though she knew that, she couldn't bring herself to look away.

Gaara's eyes remained on Hinata, his expression never changing. But his insides were in turmoil. What was he thinking, bringing Hinata there and giving her tea? Well, she did say she couldn't sleep. And? Was that all he really intended?

A prolonged irritating sound of creaking of the kitchen door being opened slowly broke through the silence as well as Gaara's thoughts. Kankuro entered the room, wearing only a pair of red boxers, dragging his feet with his eyes closed towards the fridge while scratching his backside underneath the cloth. He grabbed a transparent bottle and poured himself a glass of water.

Gaara watched his probably half-asleep brother empty his glass while Hinata fixed her eyes to her cup, not wanting to look at the half-naked puppeteer.

As soon as Kankuro finished drinking, he turned and started to walk again towards the door where he entered earlier. But before leaving the room, he raised an arm to the wall beside the door mumbling, "Who's the bastard who left the light on?" And with that, he turned off the switch and walked out. The dark room was illuminated by the faint light the window permitted from outside.

Gaara and Hinata could only gape at the kitchen door where Kankuro had just left. He hadn't even noticed them seating in the table.

Hinata's gaze went back to her cup of tea. The next thing that came out of her mouth surprised her – chuckle…that soon turned to laughter. She tried holding it back but failed. The image of Kankuro scratching his butt wouldn't get out of her mind and only made her laugh harder.

Gaara sipped his coffee, hiding what he felt like a tug at the corner of his lips. He couldn't help but smile at what Kankuro did just now…that is, scratching his behind with his eyes closed. Hinata's laughter echoed the room. Gaara stood up and turned on the light again. He listened to her laugh as he sat back down. He found himself loving the sound of it.

Well, what do you know? Hinata's laughter was music to his ears.

After some time, Hinata finally calmed down. She wiped the tears she got from laughing so hard. She had never laughed for a very long time already. The forgotten feeling was really good and relaxing. Even though she was surprised that she was able to laugh in front of someone, in front of Gaara, she didn't mind anymore. Gaara was someone who could make her show her emotions, she already noticed this way before but denied it. She didn't know what's with him but maybe it's because she felt she could express everything to him.

"_Gaara is someone who doesn't easily show what he feels. He keeps his emotions inside him." _Temari had said to her.

They were the same, thus, they could understand each other. That's what she felt.

Hinata looked at Gaara and smiled. She no longer was faking it. She _knew_ she was smiling whole-heartedly to him.

Gaara watched her lips curl into a smile. And kami knows, that took his breath away…but only for a second. Oh, who was he kidding?! Who knows maybe his air supply just got emptied because of that bright smile she gave him. Damn it! He could feel insects inside his stomach. No, "insects" wasn't the right word. What was it again? Butterflies! Yes, butterflies in his stomach. Wait…butterflies in his stomach? Butterflies?! And what is this feeling? He could feel his face burning. And it's getting hotter and hotter every second.

"G-Gaara, are you alright?" Hinata's face looked so worried. "Your face is red."

Huh?

Gaara's hand slowly rose to touch his face. Indeed, it feels hot. How unbecoming of him, blushing in front of a woman. He cleared his throat. "You should finish your tea. You still have a mission early tomorrow morning." He said while trying to sound indifferent.

"Yes." Hinata said as she sipped her tea. She settled it back down to the table afterwards. "Do you use this type of tea to sleep, Gaara?"

It took Gaara a while to answer. "Yes. What made you ask?"

"Well," Hinata started. "I've heard you used to skip sleeping when you still had the Shukaku. But when it got extracted from you, you were already free to sleep at night, right? I just thought since you were used to not sleep, being insomniac won't be surprising. So, you drink this tea. Is that correct?"

Gaara stared at her for a second before nodding.

"But, why are you drinking coffee instead?" Hinata curiously asked.

The corner of his lips twitched. What does it concern her?

"I like coffee better than tea." He plainly said. _And_ why does he even bother answering?

"It won't make you sleep." Hinata said.

"I know" he quickly responded.

"If you know, then why drink it when you're about to sleep?"

"Is there really a need to answer that?" his voice sounded annoyed. The truth was, he really doesn't know why he drinks coffee instead of tea. Drinking coffee after work just became a habit of his ever since becoming the Kazekage. Thankfully, this never hindered his sleep.

"I'm sorry for being too nosy." Hinata said in her soft voice. "But did you know drinking too much coffee eventually makes you go bald?"

Gaara's face was incredulous as he looked at Hinata who was staring back. Drinking too much coffee…turns you bald? He never heard of such a thing! If he knew a long time ago, he would've stopped drinking coffee already. He would've –

Laughter filled the room once again. Gaara could only gape at the laughing heiress across from him.

What… _on earth…_was _so_ funny? Did Kankuro walk in again? Or was it something else? What was it?!

"Gaara…you…you…!" Hinata wasn't able to finish due to all the laughter that was escaping from her mouth.

"What's so funny, Hinata?" he impatiently asked.

Hinata tried to hold back her laughter and talk. "You!" she said. It took great effort in not laughing again.

"Me?" he said in disbelief.

Hinata nodded her head. "Your face was amusing!"

"What's with my face?" Now, he really was annoyed.

"I was kidding when I said coffee would make you bald! Your face was…was….so shocked!" Hinata said before bursting into laughter again. "I just…wanted to see…how…you would react!" she said in between laughs.

Gaara gave Hinata a hard look. So, _he's_ the reason for her laughter, huh? Very funny…

As soon as Hinata's laughter died down, Gaara cleared his throat. "In case you haven't noticed it yet, I put a little sand in your tea. It adds a very special flavor to it." He said in his monotone.

Hinata's hand immediately went to her pale neck. It was her turn to gape at the red-head. "Are you kidding?"

Gaara leisurely drank his coffee before looking back at Hinata. "Perhaps, Perhaps not." He barely shrugged his shoulders.

Hinata blanched as she slowly lowered her gaze to the cup in her hand. Her other hand still clinging to her neck.

Gaara just watched her. He couldn't keep himself from smirking at her reaction. And not later, a soft chuckle escaped from his mouth.

Hinata, who heard this, raised her head and looked at Gaara with a frown. But as soon as she saw him smile, her frown disappeared and was replaced with astonishment. His smile was–dare she say it–cute. A blush crept up her face as she just stared at Gaara who was still chuckling. It was obvious that he was struggling to stop his chuckle from turning to laughter, just like what happened to Hinata.

"E-enjoying yourself?" she pouted, her blush never leaving her face.

Gaara's chuckle stopped as his eyes darted to Hinata. His face turned impassive once again. "Your face was…amusing" he returned Hinata's words earlier back to her.

"Joking about putting sand in my cup wasn't amusing" Hinata said. Her pout was still there.

"So was joking about turning bald due to too much coffee." Gaara retorted in a monotone.

There was a moment of silence as they both looked at each other with the same impassive look on their faces. After a while, Hinata flashed Gaara a smile. On the other hand, Gaara stiffened. She was smiling again. _Why_ was she smiling and looking at him like _that_? It isn't good for his heart. Why is his heart beating so fast anyway? Gaara tried to shrug the matter off through clearing his throat. But seeing Hinata smile brightly at him like that couldn't stop him from asking, "What?"

"Thank you…Gaara." Hinata said in a soft tone.

"For what?" he asked.

"For the tea." She replied as her smile widened.

Gaara emptied his cup of coffee before nodding his response to her.

"I really had fun tonight." Hinata giggled.

"That wasn't what I intended." Gaara said.

"I know."

Silence filled the room once more. Hinata emptied her cup and felt sleepiness overcame her body.

"You should go back." Gaara said as he stood up.

Hinata stood as well after nodding her head.

"I'll walk you."

Hinata's head shot up and her eyes darted to Gaara who was already at the door. "No need to." She said.

"I'll walk you, Hinata." Gaara repeated in a firm tone. It was late and the streets were dark. He didn't want to leave Hinata walking all by herself again. He felt responsible for her if so anything happens. Yes…responsible. That's all.

"Th-then, thank you." Hinata quietly said as she walked behind Gaara.

They left the Kazekage tower with the same silence as when they arrived earlier. It has been way past midnight and the soft howling of the wind outside was all they heard. It seemed like only a few minutes before they arrived at the inn. Gaara abruptly stopped as they stepped inside the building making Hinata bump into his back. Fortunately, it didn't make her fall backwards but she instinctively clung on his sleeve.

"Kazekage-sama, do you need something?" the innkeeper asked behind the counter.

Hinata looked at Gaara inquisitively while Gaara's eyes moved from her hand on his sleeve to her face.

"Room number" he simply said to Hinata, referring to her room.

"106" she replied. Realization got to her and she quickly released her hold on Gaara.

They ascended several flights of stairs and finally stopped in front of room 106, Hinata's room.

"Thank you, Gaara." Hinata said before opening the door.

"Hinata." Gaara called.

Hinata stopped and turned her head to face the red-head.

"If ever you can't sleep again, tell me." He said. He was standing there with his arms crossed as always.

Hinata gave him a small smile. "I will." She said. "Good night, Gaara."

Gaara nodded his head before turning to walk away. As soon as he was gone, Hinata went inside her room slowly closing the door behind her.

* * *

"Really? Arima-chan's coming with us?" Kankuro exclaimed happily the next day. He was in front of the Suna entrance together with Temari, Gaara, Arima and Kiba's team. They were already ready to leave for their mission.

"Of course she's coming, stupid! How will we return her if she's not with us?" Temari said as she placed her hands to her hips. "Anyway, what's the plan? Where will we start our search?"

"Naoshi-san, where were you and your clan when the bandits attacked you?" Gaara asked.

"W-we were i-in a f-f-forest." Arima stammered. "I-I'm not s-sure w-where e-exactly b-but we w-were on our w-way towards th-the F-fire c-country."

"Fire country?" Kiba echoed. "What are you going to do there?"

"We are a travelling clan. So, we were going to Fire country to stay there for a while." Arima answered.

Kiba was about to say something again when Kankuro beat him to it. "Hold it. I've noticed something." The puppeteer said with a serious look on his face. All eyes were immediately drawn to him.

"What is it?" Temari asked.

"Arima-chan only stutters whenever she's talking to Gaara. Do you like Gaara more than me, Arima-chan?" Kankuro asked Arima with a sad look on his face.

Arima's face quickly turned bright red. "E-eh?!"

Temari immediately gave her brother a smack…no, this time, it was a punch on the back.

"Ow!"

"You idiot! I thought it was something related to our mission!" Temari shouted.

"At any rate, we'll begin searching the Fire country." Shino said, ignoring the scene in front of him.

"Great timing! We Konoha ninjas know our country more than anyone outside of it." Kiba grinned. "Let's go!" he exclaimed.

* * *

**A/N: I would like to thank my big sister for helping me write some of the descriptions I find hard to depict and also for proofreading this chapter. So, what do you guys think? I think this chapter's a bit silly… and I kinda don't like it.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: I love you guys for the support and reviews! I'll do my best in making more GaaHina scenes!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 10**

"We'll just have to search the inns in Konoha, right?" Kiba asked particularly to Arima who was currently riding on Akamaru. They were only minutes away from the Fire country to search for Arima's clan.

"Not just the inns. We sometimes just set camp in the forest since we don't have that much money with us." Arima replied.

"How often do you transfer, Arima-san?" Hinata asked.

"Once a week. If need be, we transfer twice or even thrice a week." Arima replied.

"Amazing…you guys got a tough time, huh?" Kiba said in awe. "Why, are you guys often attacked?" he asked.

"Well, when I was still a child, there weren't any attempts made. There may be thieves trying to rob us while we travel but our guard takes care of them. It's just these days we're being threatened and I was the first one in my group to get caught." Arima said. "I hope my family's okay." She muttered with a tone holding sadness and worry.

"Here we are" Kiba said and they emerged at a clearing overlooking the vast forest of the fire country. Trees covered the land as far as their eyes could see. The early rays of the sun welcomed the group to a breathtaking site of emerald green and sapphire as the birds took flight to a warm morning.

"We won't finish this in weeks. It'll take us months!" Kankuro exclaimed as he gaped at the scene in front of him.

"Well, we don't have a choice. We better start moving now if we want to finish as soon as possible." Temari said.

"Hold it, hold it! It seems you're underestimating us!" Kiba gave Kankuro and Temari a lopsided grin. "One day is more than enough for us to finish searching the whole country."

"What makes you so sure, huh?" Kankuro challenged.

"Akamaru and I could track down a scent from miles away, Hinata could use Byakugan and Shino could use his bugs. Although they're disgusting they're pretty effective." Kiba explained rather proudly. "If you need a team for tracking down something, then, my team's the best choice!"

"If that's the case, then no wonder Naruto sent you." Kankuro said. "You fit the bill."

"Um…excuse me," Arima started as she shoved a hand on her pant pocket and searched for something inside. "Here's a picture of my mother in case you guys find them." She said and handed a picture to them.

Temari grabbed the photo while Hinata and the others took a look over her shoulders. The picture had Arima embraced by an older version of herself. Only, the woman hugging her had a shoulder-length black hair.

"Your mother's pretty" Kankuro commented with a smile. "You're a spitting image of her."

"Thank you" Arima said flashing the puppeteer a smile.

"Good, this would make the search faster." Temari said as she handed back the picture to Arima.

"Hinata, did you bring your cloak?" Kiba asked his teammate.

"I did" Hinata answered.

"You better put it on now and cover yourself so that no one would pester you in case we encounter a villager nearby." Kiba growled at the thought. Hinata did as she was told and immediately wore her cream-colored cloak with a hood that shaded her eyes. That way, the people in Konoha won't be able to recognize her easily.

"We should split up into three groups." Shino suggested. The others nodded their heads in agreement.

"I'll go with Hinata!" Temari immediately said as she went to Hinata's side. She smiled mischievously at her brother who was about to volunteer the same thing.

Kankuro gave his sister a glare. "Then I'll go with Arima-chan" he said as he raised his arm with a grin on his face.

"No," Shino said. "She'll be with Kiba."

"Huh?! Why?!" Kankuro whined.

"She can't move as fast as we can so she'll only hinder our mission. Because of that, she'll be riding Akamaru who's with Kiba." Shino explained.

"Not to mention, you're not familiar with this country. You'll only get lost." Kiba added.

"Then that means…" Kankuro trailed off as his index finger slowly pointed towards Shino.

"Exactly. You're coming with me" Shino said nonchalantly.

The look of despair crossed Kankuro's purple painted face. "Noooo!" He screamed dramatically as he knelt to the ground with his hands on his face.

"That's enough, drama queen." Kiba snorted. "You don't have a dog. Deal with it."

"Hinata and Temari will search the north and west side of the forest, Kiba and Arima will handle the south and east while Kankuro and I will search inside Konoha." Shino instructed.

"Hey, since when were you the leader?" Kiba asked in irritation.

"We'll meet at the park inside the village at sunset, whether or not you found them. It'll be hard looking for them in the evening so we'll need a new plan." Shino instructed, ignoring Kiba's comment.

"Damn you, Shino! Don't ignore me!" Kiba shouted as everyone except Kiba's group dispersed to different locations.

* * *

Gaara was reading a report back on his office about the day Arima was found. A Sand ninja was standing in front of his desk waiting for him to say something.

"There were no clues about the bandits?" Gaara asked in a while as he placed the scroll on his desk.

"No, Kazekage-sama" The Sand jounin answered with his head bowed low.

"You were the one to save the Naoshi that day. Yet, you never had a glimpse of those guys?" Gaara inquired.

"No, Kazekage-sama. They were wearing masks so I couldn't describe their appearances."

"According to your report, one of them has a mark on their shoulder."

"Yes, it was shaped like a dragon."

"Were there marks with the other two as well?"

"I'm not certain, Kazekage-sama. Only this one have I seen clearly when I tried to capture him. I managed to rip his sleeve and see the mark." The jounin said as he brought out a black torn sleeve from his pouch and laid it on Gaara's office table.

Gaara took the sleeve and carefully examined it. Maybe finding the Naoshi clan wouldn't be the only mission Hinata and the others would do.

* * *

"This…is impossible!" Kiba exclaimed in exhaustion. All of them except for Temari and Hinata were now gathered at the park in Konoha and none of them present has brought new information of the whereabouts of the Naoshis.

"And here I thought you could easily do it." Kankuro commented as he watched Kiba slump on the park bench with Akamaru beside him.

"Shut up…They weren't there" Kiba mumbled, unable to shout at Kankuro due to his tiredness.

The sun has already set and the dark night was starting to engulf the whole place. Lights from houses and buildings were being turned on and only a few people remained loitering outside on the streets. The search at this hour would be more difficult than it already was in daylight.

"Ah, here comes Temari." Kankuro announced. All heads turned to the direction Kankuro was looking. They watched Temari land gracefully in front of them.

"You're late. And where's Hinata?" Kiba asked.

"I wasn't late for nothing, you pathetic mutt. We found them." Temari said with a smug look on her face. "Hinata is trying to approach them now."

* * *

"Excuse me" Hinata softly called out.

In front of her was a small camp fire with five people gathered around it. As soon as they saw her, a brown-haired guy wearing a black sleeveless top, a pair of worn-out pants and open sandals immediately grabbed a kunai and blocked her view from the rest of his companions. He was into a defensive battle stance, kunai at hand, with a stern look on his face. His brown eyes were looking directly into her lavender ones under her hood.

"Stay away" He said between clenched teeth.

"Please, I wish you no harm." Hinata calmly said, unfazed by the intensity of the glare he was giving her. She slowly raised her hands to her hood and removed it. The light from the camp fire danced upon Hinata's soft features. Her indigo hair, almost black in the night, framed her pale face giving her a look of a very beautiful porcelain doll.

"You're a Hyuuga…" a raspy male voice behind the brown-haired guy said as he saw her eyes. Hinata's attention darted to a short old man with brown eyes. He was the shortest and eldest among the five. And if his voice wasn't enough proof of it, his white hair and the creases on his face were. He was wearing a black cloak that covered most part of his body except for his face, neck and hands.

"I am." Hinata confirmed.

"What is your business with us?" the old man asked as he stepped in front of the brown-haired young man.

"My name is Hyuuga Hinata, a Leaf ninja. I was tasked to find your group, Naoshi-san." Hinata answered.

The old man's eyes slightly widened. "So you've heard of us. It's an honor to be able to talk to the heiress of the Hyuuga clan."

"How did you know?" Hinata asked with a hint of surprise.

"How would I not when the villagers here talk about you?"

"I see" Hinata allowed herself to smile.

"So, what do you need from us, Hyuuga-sama?" the old man asked.

"Please, call me Hinata" Hinata said. "The Sand village was able to rescue a member of your clan, Naoshi Arima. I believe her mother's with you?"

"Arima?" a woman that looked like the lady in the picture Arima showed them dashed to the old man's side. Her blue eyes that held sadness and hope were staring into Hinata's pale ones. The brown-haired guy behind them straightened out and looked at Hinata with expectant but cautious eyes.

"My daughter's alive?" the woman asked Hinata in a quiet tone.

"Yes, she's with my team." Hinata replied with a slight nod of her head.

A sigh of relief escaped from the woman's mouth and soon after she was on her knees weeping with her hands to her face. The young man knelt beside the woman and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, a smile grazing his face. The two other members about Hinata's age, who remained on their spot, were also relieved to hear the news. They looked like twins with the same auburn shoulder-length hair and grey eyes. The only difference was one was a girl and the other a guy.

Not a second later, Shino and the others arrived with Temari on the lead.

"Mom?" Arima quietly called as she slowly approached the group. She was met with silence as she watched them turn their heads and look at her like she came back from the dead.

"Arima!" her mother sprang to her feet and pulled Arima into a hug. "My child, I thought you were dead." The woman said in a quaky voice as tears continued to flow out from her eyes.

Arima wrapped her arms around her mother and also cried. They were soon joined by the others members as they gathered around and hugged the girl.

"How sentimental!" Kankuro sniffed. "Come on guys! Us too!" he said as he attempted to hug Temari beside him and was met by a hard slap on the face.

"Get your snotty smudged face away from me!" Temari shouted as she pushed her brother away. It was true that Kankuro's face paint smudged all over his face that the only thing lacking was to pixelate it due to how disgusting it looks.

"Thank you for bringing my daughter to me" The woman said as she released Arima and wiped her tears away.

"No problem" Kiba said with a toothy grin.

"Mission accomplished" Kankuro commented not bothering to wipe his dirtied face.

"Oh that reminds me," Kiba started as he gave a quick scan to the Naoshi group. "Which one of you is the Sand ninja?"

"Me" the brown-haired guy reluctantly said as he raised his hand to be recognized.

"Man, what kind of ninja are you who can't even protect the girl from getting kidnapped?" Kiba said as he sighed in exasperation.

"S-sorry" the guy whispered.

"It's not Daisuke-kun's fault, Kiba-san. The bandits were too strong for him." Arima interjected.

"No, Arima-chan. It's my fault that I was unable to live up to my father's reputation." Daisuke said.

"What do you mean?" Temari asked. "Weren't you trained by your father? It was part of his responsibility to train the future guard of the group, right?"

Daisuke's face was filled with grief. "My father was killed protecting the group from an ambush attack when I was five. He wasn't able to teach me everything and only the basics of being a ninja."

"Oh…I'm sorry to hear that." Temari muttered, a bit guilty that she brought up the topic.

"It's okay. I'm to blame anyway that I'm a slow learner and was unable to polish my skills. I guess I just used my father's death as an excuse for my weakness." He glumly said.

"Hey, do you seriously wish to protect this group?" Kiba asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Of course! I'd do anything to protect them. They've become my family ever since I was born." Daisuke said.

"If you're a slow learner, then the more reason you shouldn't stop training. Be a man!" Kiba said as he raised his hand and formed a fist.

Daisuke's eyes widened and then he smiled. "Y-yes, I won't stop training!" he said as he straightened himself, determination gleamed in his brown eyes.

"We should probably go back, but it's already pretty late and dark." Kankuro said as he looked at the night sky. "Besides, we couldn't just leave them here. What if they'll be attacked again?"

"That's true." Temari agreed. "I'll send word to Gaara tomorrow regarding that matter."

"You're from the Sand, right?" the old man said as he approached Temari.

"Yeah…my forehead protector says so." Temari said with a light tap on her metal plate.

"I have a favor to ask of you. I was hoping you could send word to your Kazekage that I request an audience with him here in the Fire country" the old man said. "I wish to speak with him regarding the attack. It has been years ever since we've been hunted down. And now, Arima has been the first victim in my group. I won't wait for a second attack to befall on us."

"Here? Couldn't you just come with us to the Wind country to do that?" Temari asked.

The old man slowly shook his head. "I wish to speak with the Kazekage _and_ the Hokage. And since we're already here in the Fire country, I am asking for your Kazekage's presence here." He explained with his raspy voice.

Temari looked at Kankuro, asking for his opinion. Once he nodded his head in agreement, Temari turned to face the old man once again. "Very well. I'll send word to him first thing tomorrow morning."

"Thank you" the old man said with a smile. "Oh, and we haven't introduced ourselves yet." He said and faced his group and nodded his head for them to come. They gathered in a line in front of Hinata's group. "I am Naoshi Oda" the old man said.

"I'm Kumiko, Arima's mother." The woman said with a smile. "I can never thank you enough for what you did."

"I'm Daisuke, their protector." Daisuke said with more confidence than earlier.

"I'm Kuro" the auburn-haired guy introduced with a slight bow of his head. He was wearing a black long-sleeved top with a white scarf around his neck, a pair of tan pants and black open sandals.

"And I'm Kuro's younger twin sister, Shiro" the auburn-haired woman wearing a white long-sleeved top with black scarf, a pair of tan shorts and white open sandals said with a smile as she did a curtsy.

Temari's group also did their introductions. After that, they all settled down around the small camp fire and prepared to sleep.

"You guys should rest. I'll stay awake and keep watch." Daisuke offered to Hinata and the others.

"It's okay, Daisuke-san. I'll watch" Hinata said.

"I'll stay up with Hinata" Shino said.

"Me too" Kiba said with a grin on his face.

"Eh? But it's my duty –"

"To rest and prepare for tomorrow" Kiba cut off Daisuke's protest. "Go to sleep. We'll take it from here." He said as he gave Daisuke's back a light push.

"Well…okay, if you guys insist" Daisuke reluctantly said and went to his spot to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Hinata and her team, together with the Naoshi group, made their way inside the hidden village of the Leaf. Temari wasted no time in sending Gaara a message back in Suna while Kiba, Shino and Hinata went to the Hokage's office to submit their report. Arima's clan went with them to be introduced to Naruto.

After telling Naruto all about the Naoshi clan, to which he fortunately understood, they told him about old man Oda's request for a meeting.

"I don't mind holding a meeting. But, Jii-chan(Grandpa), you have to wait for another seven days for Gaara to come here." Naruto said to Oda as he put his hands behind his head.

"Seven days?" Oda echoed with surprise. "It takes that long?"

"Yeah. If Temari sent a message today, it would take three days for it to arrive in Suna. As soon as Gaara receives it, he'll send a reply. Of course, he won't be able to leave immediately so he'll leave the next day and will arrive here in three days." Kiba explained knowing full well that Naruto won't be able to.

"Thanks, Kiba." Naruto grinned. Then, a knock on the door was heard. "Enter." The door immediately opened with a click and Temari and Kankuro stepped in.

"I see, everybody's here" Temari said while she closed the door behind her.

"Oh, it's Kankuro and Gaara's sister, what are you guys doing here?" Naruto asked.

"It's Temari, you shrimp! How come you remembered Kankuro's name?" Temari asked in irritation. "Anyways, we just came to check on you guys."

"I see, we were just talking about…uh…what are we talking about again?" Naruto turned to look at Kiba who stared back in disbelief.

"Jeez! You weren't really paying attention, were you Naruto?" Kiba sighed. "We were talking about Gaara's arrival."

"Oh right…Gaara. We were talking about him." Naruto grinned.

"Hey, is he really the Hokage? He looks really goofy" whispered Daisuke to Kankuro who happened to be beside him.

"_Exactly_ my first reaction when Naruto became the Hokage!" Kankuro said with a lopsided grin etched on his face. "You may find it unbelievable, but get used to it. He may look pretty stupid and loud, which he is, but apparently, he's the one who defeated Pain, the Akatsuki leader years ago."

Daisuke's eyes widened with surprise. "You mean, he's_ the_ Uzumaki Naruto?!" he practically yelled. All discussions ended as all eyes were drawn to Daisuke who instinctively covered his mouth.

Kankuro rolled his eyes. "Duh! Like someone with the same stupid name exists in this world!"

"Hey, my name's not stupid!" Naruto protested.

"Were you guys talking about Naruto?" Kiba asked with a toothy grin.

"Y-yes." Daisuke reluctantly answered.

Kankuro chuckled. "I was telling him about Naruto's fight with Pain."

The Naoshis' reactions were pretty much the same as Daisuke's.

"Of course, why hadn't I noticed it before?" Oda muttered. "Uzumaki Naruto, the hero of Konoha. I heard you led the shinobi alliance to its victory during the fourth great ninja war. You are the container of the nine-tailed demon beast, are you not?"

"You sure heard a lot about me." Naruto chuckled as he scratched the back of his head, flattered at the praises Oda was giving him.

"Have you forgotten already? Your name's pretty well-known nowadays." Kiba said.

"Of course I haven't." Naruto said with a grin. "Hey, wait a minute. If the Naoshi clan could heal anything with their blood, then why didn't you guys lend us a hand in the war? We could've used your help back then!"

"We're not fighters, Hokage-sama. We have surely been a bother more than a help." Oda said.

"You have a point." Naruto nodded in understanding. "Oh well, at least the entire world is saved." He said.

"Okay, are you guys done here? Because I'll take the Naoshis and rent us some rooms." Temari said.

* * *

Hinata looked up to see the stars that looked like sprinkled shimmering gems all over dark velvet that is the night sky. Everything was perfect that evening. The waterfall she loved so much was still gushing out the lovely blue waters that still sparkled in the night. The tall trees that surrounded the area were still as healthy as she last saw them. The grass underneath her as she sat there still had the soothing effect on her. A contented sigh escaped from her mouth as she lowered her gaze to her feet dipped in the cool water. Smiling to herself, she lay down on the grass and slowly closed her eyes, feeling the gentle breeze grazing her pale skin.

Going to this secluded place became her routine. Though the garden back at the Hyuuga compound was larger and wider, she's more comfortable here. There was no one to interfere her moment of bliss and no one to tell her what or what not to do. In times of happiness or sadness, she always ends up here.

She thought about lots of things. How she was happy she found Arima's family yesterday night, how grateful she was that Naruto didn't try to talk to her back in his office, how happy she was to be back home and sitting here basking herself under the wonderful starry night. Then, without warning, her thoughts began to drift to a certain red-head who has already met her twice in the same place.

Hinata's eyes snapped open. _"Gaara…"_ she thought. She had to admit, she feels comfortable whenever she's around him. Though their encounters were only few, Hinata felt she understood him like they knew each other for years, since their conditions were similar. It was just like how she began to like Naruto. His situation in the past was much like hers – hated and looked down upon. That's why when she saw the determination in his eyes when he announced publicly that he'll someday be the Hokage, she started to admire him. And before she knew it, her admiration turned to infatuation that turned to love. But after that love was shattered, she wasn't going to allow it to shatter a second time. For when the time she'll love again would never come.

But whatever she felt whenever she's with Naruto was the opposite of what she felt with Gaara. The red-head made her feel at ease. She felt like she could express everything she hides deep down inside. She felt like she could just pour out her feelings without getting too self-conscious about it. And that was why she was able to laugh that night when they drank tea and coffee, why she was able to tease him, why she was able to smile at him. The truth was, after Temari had told her about Gaara's condition and asked for her help, Hinata began to see herself in Gaara. That night when she was wondering why he yelled at her, more than empathy, she felt sympathy for him. Although his expression didn't change, she didn't miss the confusion and surprise in his eyes. She began to question herself if she looked as pitiful as him, someone who had a hard time expressing themselves. She pitied him because he couldn't answer the questions that must be going through his head. She came to realize all this when she saw Gaara laugh, although it was restrained. Maybe it was out of curiosity of what his other reactions will be. But there and then, she felt the urge and determination to make him open up fully.

Hinata allowed her lips to curl into a smile as she sat back up and remove her feet from the water. She shivered as the wind blew across her wet feet.

Who knows, maybe she'll also learn to open up and show her emotions once again. All she needs to do is talk and befriend Gaara, right? And that's exactly what she'll do.

* * *

It was the day of Gaara's arrival in Konoha and there were more people than usual that had come to greet him at the front gates. Temari and Kankuro were present of course since they were his siblings. Shikamaru was there because he was tasked to. The Naoshi clan, however, was there not only because it was their elder that requested the meeting but merely because they wanted to see the face of the fifth Kazekage.

"I told you guys, he's not ugly!" Arima whispered to Daisuke, Kuro and Shiro.

"Really? How about him rumored to be a monster?" Daisuke asked also in a whisper.

"That…I'm not quite sure. But the first time I saw him, he didn't look like a monster." Arima said with a pink blush grazing her cheeks. Noticing this, Kuro and Shiro's gazes met and slowly a mischievous smile formed on their lips.

"Describe him then, Arima-chan." Shiro teased and couldn't contain her giggle.

Arima's face turned beet red. "B-but didn't I already d-describe him earlier, Shiro-chan?!"

"I'm sorry. We didn't quite hear it. Right, Kuro?" Shiro faced her twin who gave a nod. A devious grin was plastered on his face.

"Well, h-he has red hair, green eyes and tattoo on one side of his forehead. He's tall and…and…" Arima trailed off and, if possible, turned an even darker shade of red.

"And?" Shiro teasingly asked.

"H-handsome…" Arima finished almost inaudibly. But Daisuke and the twins were able to hear it, much to her chagrin.

Shiro flashed a mischievous smile. "You like him, don't you?" she smirked at the redness of Arima's face.

Arima was about to deny it, although it was already dead obvious, when she was interrupted by Temari calling Gaara's name. She spun around and immediately spotted the red-haired guy who was making his way towards the village. A jounin escort was at his side.

"Oh my, you're right. He _is_ handsome" commented Shiro who was now looking at Gaara's features in awe.

"Gaara, how was your trip?" Temari asked her brother as soon as he was on a hearing distance. The jounin escort left after Gaara gave him permission to go.

"The Naoshi clan's over there." Kankuro said as he gestured over to where Arima and the others were standing watching Gaara.

"Six?" Gaara asked Kankuro, referring to the number of the members.

"Yeah. Actually, one Sand ninja and five Naoshis." Kankuro answered. "The old man with the black cloak was the one who asked you to come."

Oda turned his head to look at his group. "Let's go and introduce ourselves to the Kazekage." He said and started to walk towards Gaara. The others followed suit.

"Pleasure to meet you, Kazekage-sama. My name is Naoshi Oda. I would like to thank you for accepting my request." Oda said after he reached Gaara.

Gaara took his time to observed Oda. He was only as high as Gaara's waist so he had to strain his neck to look up when talking to him. After a while, Gaara finally nodded his response and spared a glance to the others behind him.

"And I would also like to introduce my family." Oda said as he introduced each one of the members including Daisuke.

"Would you like to start the meeting immediately?" Shikamaru aked Oda a moment later.

"If it's fine by Kazekage-sama" Oda replied as he looked at Gaara for his response.

Gaara just nodded in agreement.

"Well then, follow me to the meeting room." Shikamaru said and they walked to the direction of the Hokage tower.

"He's a man of few words, isn't he?" Kumiko whispered to her daughter beside her.

"Yes, he is." Arima answered with a smile.

As they neared their destination, they spotted a crowd standing just in front of the Hokage tower's entrance way.

"What's the commotion over there?" Oda took the liberty to ask.

"That?" Temari smirked. "That's just Hinata."

Gaara's ears twitched. He was paying attention more to the ground than what was in front of him. As he heard Hinata's name, he slowly raised his head and looked at the crowd ahead of them. She must be drowning in that crowd again.

"Oi, you guys! Don't block the way!" Temari shouted to the crowd of men with a motion of her hand for them to go away.

After the crowd noticed that the Kazekage was there, they hurriedly left leaving Hinata standing alone in front of them. And as soon as she spotted Gaara who was looking back at her, she gave him a smile.

"Gaara, you're here." Hinata said. Temari turned to look at her red-head brother's reaction and watched with interest the sparkle of emotion in his eyes before it turned dull again.

"Hinata, what are you doing here?" Gaara asked in a monotone.

"I just came from the Hokage's office helping Naru–" Hinata got cut off as they heard a very loud horrified scream from inside the tower. It sounded like it came from Naruto.

"NARUTO!" shouted a voice that clearly belonged to Tsunade. "How dare you break my last bottle of sake!"

"It was an accident, baa-chan! Please have mercy!" exclaimed the said person in question. "Why did you put it on my table anyway?! You know I wouldn't have seen it!"

"Shut up! I don't want your excuses! Buy me another bottle of sake this instant!" Tsunade roared.

Soon after, the blond Hokage emerged from the entrance way, looking behind him and running like hell's at his feet towards the direction to where Hinata was standing. Hinata watched Naruto's head turn in front and saw her too late. With Naruto's speed, she wouldn't have the time anymore to jump away. Hinata shut her eyes, expecting to be bumped by Naruto and hit the hard ground.

And yeah, Naruto did bump to her, alright. But the impact of falling to the hard ground never came. Slowly, Hinata opened her eyes and saw a blond head. That's to be expected. But why is it the only thing in front of her as far as she could see? Then she glimpsed a speck of sand just hovering beside her line of vision. It was Gaara's sand!

"Come back h–" Tsunade stopped short as she saw the scene in front of her. Her frown faded and a sly smile formed on her lips and she crossed her arms to her overly-huge chest. "Not too shabby, eh, Naruto?" Tsunade teased.

"What a lucky bastard…" Kankuro commented with wide eyes.

"Pervert" Temari murmured.

A grunt escaped from Naruto's mouth as he opened his eyes only to see Hinata's soft clothed chest on his face. In a panic, he scrambled away, a deep blush staining his cheeks. He ended up falling off the floating sand of Gaara. "H-hinata-chan, I'm so s-sorry!" he stammered as he sat himself up.

Gaara's sand gently lowered and laid Hinata on the ground. Hinata watched the sand return to the gourd on Gaara's back before her eyes landed on Gaara's jade ones.

"Hinata-chan, are you alright?" Naruto asked with a worried expression on his still red face. Hinata quickly broke the eye contact with Gaara to look at Naruto and nod her head.

"No fair, Naruto! I wanted to feel Hinata-chan's chest too!" Kankuro whined which earned him a punch that sent him flying a few inches away, courtesy of Temari.

"Th-that was an accident, Hinata-chan! Believe me! Tsunade baa-chan was chasing me a-a-and I was–" Naruto was silenced with Hinata's giggle.

"It's okay, Naruto-kun." Hinata said with a warm smile. "I believe you."

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief before he grinned. And that was when he noticed the group watching them. "Oh, Gaara! You're here!" he exclaimed in surprise as he spotted the red-head.

"Naruto" Gaara acknowledged.

"Right! The meeting!" Naruto said as he sprang to his feet and offered a hand to Hinata.

Gaara watched in silence as Hinata hesitantly took Naruto's hand and stood up. Temari, who was observing Gaara, couldn't suppress her smirk.

"Let's go, Gaara" Temari said as she motioned for her brother to come. Shikamaru and Oda were already entering the Hokage tower.

"I'll let you off for now Naruto, since you have a meeting to attend to. But don't think I won't let you buy that sake anymore." Tsunade said as she walked back inside the tower.

"Jeez! Tsunade baa-chan really is a monster once she gets angry" Naruto said to Hinata once Tsunade was gone. "Well, I gotta go too, Hinata-chan. See ya around!" he said with a wave of his hand as he caught up with the three Sand siblings. Hinata stood on her spot and watched Naruto with Temari, Kankuro and Gaara enter the building.

"I'm sure Hokage-sama likes you, Hinata-sama." a soft female voice said behind Hinata that made her jump in surprise. Hinata turned around to see the Naoshis and Daisuke looking at her. So it was only Oda who would attend the meeting. "I'm sorry, did I startle you?" Kumiko asked with a smile.

"Y-yes" Hinata answered in a soft voice. "I'm sorry but what did you say earlier? I didn't quite catch it."

"I said Hokage-sama likes you" Kumiko replied.

"I agree." Shiro said. "Just the look on his face makes it so obvious. Right, Kuro?" she faced her twin who only nodded his head.

"Are you both in a relationship, Hinata-sama?" Daisuke asked with an interested look on his face.

"Eh?" Hinata's eyes widened. "We're not." She replied.

"Really? I really thought you two were." Daisuke said with surprise in his tone.

"Daisuke, there you go again." Kumiko softly scolded. "Stop asking such personal questions."

"Sorry, can't help it." Daisuke chuckled as he scratched the back of his head.

"I'm sorry, Hinata-sama. It's his habit." Kumiko apologized with a bow.

"No, it's ok." Hinata smiled.

"Eh…she's actually pretty cute when she smiles. Right, Kuro?" Shiro whispered as she turned to her twin. Her eyes widened at the blush grazing Kuro's cheeks. "Kuro?" she softly called.

"It seems Kuro-kun's interested with Hinata-san" Arima whispered to Shiro.

"Ah! I know!" Daisuke suddenly exclaimed. "Kazekage-sama and Hinata-sama are dating!" he pointed his index finger to Hinata.

The heiress's face was incredulous before her expression softened and she let out a soft giggle. "No, we're not. Gaara and I are just…" she paused to find the right word. "Friends."

"Eeehhh…What's with the pause?" Daisuke teased with a sly grin on his face.

"Daisuke!" Kumiko warned, although it didn't sound like one.

"Sorry" Daisuke muttered guiltily. "It's just that Kazekage-sama protected Hinata-sama from falling to the ground earlier. So I assumed it that way." He explained with an awkward smile.

* * *

The meeting room was a large area that could accommodate a huge number of people. On the center of the room was a long wooden oval table with several chairs placed on its side. Naruto was seated at the head of the table while Gaara and Oda were seated across each other. Temari and Kankuro remained outside of the room in case Gaara needs them.

Oda cleared his throat before he spoke, "Before I begin with the meeting, I would like to once again thank Hokage-sama and Kazekage-sama for accepting."

"Nah, no problem" Naruto grinned.

"This meeting, as you already know, is about my clan, the Naoshi. We were already ambushed by a group of bandits just a few weeks ago. It resulted to the capture of one of my members. Now, I requested this meeting because I don't want any more of my family to be hunted down. I've lived for seventy-three years experiencing the terror of witnessing the capture of my family one by one while running and hiding from those people and now I've grown tired and weary. I want an end to this." Oda said in a raspy but firm voice.

"And what do you propose we do?" Gaara asked in a monotone.

"I'm asking for the capture of the bandits who ambushed us." Oda said. "For the protection of my clan, the Sand village has already given us enough protection that ceased the hunting of my clan in the past few years and I'm not asking for more." he said. "However, I'm begging additional protection from the Leaf village, Hokage-sama. Even a temporary one will do" He said to Naruto.

"Eh? Well, my answer depends on what you exactly need." Naruto replied.

"I'm asking for a temporary stay here in Konoha." Oda said. Naruto's eyes widened which made Oda immediately give his explanation. "I know it's too much to ask, but it's only until the bandits are captured."

"Naoshi-san, you do know that you're asking protection for your group alone, don't you?" Gaara said. "This doesn't stop them from targeting the other groups of your clan who are in a different location."

"Y-yes, I know." Oda replied with his head low. "And I admit my selfishness."

"However, since it was the second Kazekage who first offered you security, the responsibility of maintaining your safety falls to me, the current Kazekage of my village." Gaara said. Oda's head shot up. "In other words, it is my duty to accept what you're asking from me. I'll make sure of the captivity of the bandits."

"Thank you, Kazekage-sama." Oda said with a smile of gratitude. He looked like he was about to cry from happiness.

"Hmm…since Gaara said it was his duty to protect your clan, then I say it's my duty to help him accomplish that." Naruto said with a determined smile. "Not only because of the alliance between our village but also because I'm his friend. So I accept."

"Thank you very much, Hokage-sama! Kazekage-sama!" Oda bowed his head as low as the table allowed him.

Naruto looked at Gaara and flashed him a grin. Gaara, on the other hand, gave him a small smile.

"I do have one suggestion, though." Naruto said. "Instead of only your group, I want _all_ of the Naoshi protected and settled in a safe place. There will be no group to travel."

"But, how do you do that?" Oda asked, clearly astounded by Naruto's idea.

"Hey, Jii-chan, is there any way to recognize a Naoshi, aside from the marks on the back of your neck?" Naruto asked.

Oda thought for a moment before answering, "There is. In fact, I have a deep feeling that this was the method the bandits used to easily track us."

"Really? What is it?"

"Our chakra signature. We Naoshis have something in common in our chakra flow due to our blood being special. And a sensor or someone with the ability to see chakra can distinguish that." Oda answered.

"Byakugan! Hinata or Neji!" Naruto exclaimed. "We can ask the Hyuuga clan for this."

"Yes, indeed" Oda said with a nod.

"Naruto, we can ask for the other village's help in finding the Naoshis to make it quick." Gaara said.

"Yeah, you're right. We can't waste time since many lives are at stake." Naruto agreed.

"We'll send word to them indicating that this will be a top secret mission known only to the kages and a few selected sensor ninjas." Gaara said.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, I admit. I…procrastinated! There! You happy now? I'm sorry I procrastinated, it's my favorite hobby! And I'm more than sorry that there are no GaaHina scenes in this chapter. You may kill me, oh dear readers!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Special thanks to ****maxridelover**** and ****Megane-usa-chan**** for reviewing again. I enjoyed the reviews, thank you :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 11**

The meeting ended that day. Naruto wasted no time in calling for Hinata, the Naoshis and some sensor ninjas. He instructed them to sense the chakra flow of the Naoshis and find the common thing in it. They were able to find it easily with Oda's guidance.

After, Naruto and Gaara immediately sent word to the other villages about the Naoshi clan and their need of assistance to find each of the members. So, once the other kages of different villages receives it, they would send out some sensor ninjas to go and track the Naoshis and tell them to find the nearest hidden village and seek protection there. The mission was top secret. So only the sensor ninjas that are being sent out and the kages have knowledge about it.

"We did say we're going to capture the bandits. But how will we do that if we don't have a lead to them?" Naruto asked Gaara later in his office. "Though we could use Shikamaru's help to devise a plan for that."

Gaara was across him seated in front of his table doing practically nothing but cross his arms. "No need." Gaara muttered. "I have something that could lead us to one of them, though the chances of finding them are highly low if we don't act now."

"Something?" Naruto repeated with surprise in his tone. "What?"

Gaara didn't respond but instead brought out the torn-out black sleeve he got from the Sand jounin and handed it to Naruto.

"What's this?" Naruto asked as he grabbed the sleeve and eyed it curiously.

"Sleeve from one of the bandits" Gaara replied in a monotone.

Naruto grinned. "You plan on using Kiba to track this scent, huh?"

"Mom, where are you going?" Arima called out to Kumiko who was holding an empty basket on her hand.

* * *

"I'm just going to pick some herbs for medicine. You know, so that we can earn at least a bit of money." Kumiko answered with a smile.

"Outside the village's walls?" Arima's eyes widened. "But it's dangerous!"

Kumiko thought for a second before smiling once again at her daughter. "Then I'll bring a ninja with me." She said when she spotted Kiba and Akamaru taking a walk far from them. "Kiba-kun!" Kumiko called out while waving a hand up in the air.

Kiba and Akamaru's head turned at the same time to where Kumiko was. Kiba slowly approached the woman with a curious look on his face, Akamaru followed behind him.

"You need something?" Kiba asked when they were in a hearing distance.

"Yes, I would like to ask a favor if it's not too much bother." Kumiko said. Kiba gave a curt nod and she continued, "Could you please accompany me to the forest? I would like to pick some medicinal herbs there."

"Herbs? Why would you need herbs when you can heal with your blood?" Kiba asked, astounded.

"Our bloodline was supposed to be a secret. So, we heal people through our medicines for a living." Kumiko explained.

Kiba nodded in understanding. "Okay, I'll accompany you. But be quick about it." He said.

With a nod, Kumiko made her way towards the forest. Kiba and Akamaru followed behind shortly.

* * *

"So Kankuro's leaving for Suna tomorrow, huh?" Naruto said as he emptied his third bowl of ramen. He invited Gaara to eat lunch with him, which the red-head immediately accepted. So there they were, sitting at Ramen Ichiraku.

Gaara nodded his head in response. Although he has a lot to do in Suna, it seems the issue about the Naoshi clan is keeping him from his duties in his village. But then again, this was also a responsibility he can't ignore. And so he asked Kankuro to take over for a while until he gets back. Besides, his brother likes to act as Kazekage. It made him a…how does he call it? Ah, _ladies man. _

"Aren't you going to eat that?" Naruto asked. His eyes were fixed at Gaara's bowl of ramen.

Gaara slid his bowl to Naruto's direction indicating that he wasn't going to eat anymore…if he ever took a bite. Naruto gave him a confused look. "You can have it" Gaara simply said.

Naruto's face lightened as he flashed his friend a big grin. "Thanks!" he said before completely devouring the food. "Man, I still have to get that sake for Tsunade baa-chan!" he said while stuffing his mouth with noodles. Naruto doesn't really know the word "manners". Not that any of his friends mind.

Suddenly, the scene early that morning flashed in Gaara's mind. The scene where Naruto's face rested on Hinata's…

Gaara mentally shook his head. What was he thinking? It was an accident. Gaara knows that. Everybody knows that. But why was there a feeling deep inside him? A feeling he couldn't comprehend? Whatever it was, it scared him. To think all he wanted to do earlier was to rip Naruto to shreds. It's true that Gaara had an amazing self-control. But that's the reason why it made him so terrified! He possesses incredible self-control yet, to his own surprise, he _nearly_ gave in to the urge. Why did he felt that way? He respected the blond ninja. He respected Uzumaki Naruto! And why not? He was the one who changed him, after all. So…_why_?

"…didn't specify what kind," was all Gaara heard from Naruto as his focus returned to their conversation.

Gaara turned to look at the grinning blond ninja. He already finished eating in just a few seconds, as expected.

"Oh well, I'll just buy anything as long as it's sake!" Naruto said. "Oh and, the lunch is one me, Gaara!"

He ate Gaara's part anyway, so fair enough. They left the place and Gaara accompanied Naruto in buying sake for Tsunade. It didn't take long before Naruto was heading back towards the Hokage tower while Gaara returned to where he was currently staying. He told Naruto he still had to finish reviewing the reports sent to him from Suna. Well, Naruto did the same thing as soon as he arrived at his office. That was, until there was someone who knocked at the door.

As soon as he gave permission to enter, the door flew open revealing a serious Kiba and Akamaru. "Naruto, we've been attacked earlier" Kiba said as he closed the door behind him.

Naruto's head shot up. "What? When?" he asked. His attention was completely drawn to the discussion.

"Akamaru and I accompanied Kumiko-san to the forest outside the village. She was picking herbs when we were ambushed by three bandits." Kiba explained. "I figured they were the ones who are hunting the Naoshi clan and so Akamaru and I managed to familiarize each of their scent. So if ever we're near them, we could easily track them."

Naruto nodded in understanding. "How did you deal with them?"

Kiba flashed a lopsided grin. "Don't worry! Akamaru and I have gone easy on them. They retreated too early and we let them go since Kumiko was there" he said smugly. "Of course not without a few broken bones" he said as he looked at his dog.

Naruto chuckled. "Well, that's good to hear." He said. "Aside from scent, have you got anything else?"

Kiba thought for a moment. "I guess. I'm not sure about this but I think one of them was a ninja, a missing nin."

Naruto's eyes widened. "A missing nin?" he echoed.

Kiba shrugged. "Well, he gotta be. Why else would there be a ninja with two other bandits? But that missing nin sure is not an S-rank. Man, he didn't even look like he's in the bingo book."

"How about the other two?" Naruto asked.

"They look like some ordinary thieves. Their skills were unrefined and they bring large swords like barbarians." Kiba paused. "More likely, that missing nin was there to lead those thieves to a Naoshi member. A sensor ninja, that's what he is."

"Oda jii-chan said a Naoshi has a common signature in their chakra flow and only a sensor ninja can distinguish that. So, yeah, maybe he _is_ a sensor ninja." Naruto concluded. "I have to tell Gaara."

* * *

Gaara sighed in his chair back in his room in an inn. He stared at his table in front of him filled with papers and scrolls of requests that needed his review. He just got back from the Hokage's office notified that Inuzuka Kiba encountered three of the bandits. The Inuzuka was able to smell the sleeve Gaara had in his pocket saying that it was the same smell of the missing nin. So the man with the dragon tattoo was a sensor ninja. At least now they were able to gain more information on the group of bandits.

Gaara raked a hand to his hair. He wasn't the type to take a break easily. Usually he would drown himself with his work to the extent of skipping meals and sleep. But this time, he really felt like resting. A lot has happened lately. Temari had also suggested he rest before she went to her own room to retire for the day. Gaara turned his head to the window in his room. It was already evening. He stood up, grabbed his gourd and left the room. After he rests for a while, he'll get back to his work.

Yes, after he rests…for a while. He frowned. _Why _was _he_ standing in front of the waterfall place? The place where he first talked to Hinata?

Sabaku no Gaara has self-control. _Yeah right_, he couldn't even control his own feet from going to this heavenly place!

"I knew you'd come," a soft voice spoke. "Gaara"

His head turned to a familiar figure. A figure he had quite gotten used to. "Hinata" he called her name.

Hinata gave him a warm smile that made him hold his breath…once again. "Can't sleep?" she asked, her smile turning mischievous. "Should I make you your coffee, oh great _Kazekage-sama_?" she teased.

Gaara allowed his lips to curl into a smirk as he took a seat near her, his gourd lying beside him. "Coffee doesn't make me sleep, Hinata" he stated as he went along with her teasing. He had to admit, he enjoys her company. It relaxes him. Last time back in Suna was a proof of it.

"So, what brings you here?" Hinata asked. There was still the same distance between their seating since the last time they met at the same place.

"I'm resting" Gaara replied without looking at her. His attention was on the night sky above.

"I see" Hinata said with a curt nod. "How long are you going to stay?"

Gaara thought for a moment before answering, "After the issue of the Naoshi clan has been settled."

"But that could take a while" Hinata commented.

"Indeed" Gaara said. "Do you want me to leave soon?" he asked as he turned his gaze to the heiress. The question just came out before he knew it. But whatever emotions stirred inside him, he didn't show it in his face. His expressionless mask was still intact.

The question surprised Hinata. She hadn't expected him to ask that. "No, I want you to stay" she answered honestly, her eyes fixed on his.

Now, _that_ made his eyes widen. She wanted him…to stay? Why?

His unspoken question was answered shortly. "I want to get to know you better, Gaara" Hinata said as a faint blush colored her cheeks. She meant it. She really does want to know him better. She wanted him to open up to her and she believes that once he does, her incapability to show her emotions would be gone.

She was blushing in front of him while telling him things someone never told him before. His heart thumped wildly in his chest, new emotions stirred inside him and he was confused as hell! What is this feeling? It was new and…and…_scary_.

"Will you…allow me to?" Hinata hesitantly asked.

Oh, he doesn't know. Why was she even asking such a ridiculous question? But even if it was ridiculous, it still made him nod his head.

Hinata beamed at him. And before they both know it, Hinata was already on her knees hugging the frozen Kazekage. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, her cheek touched his, and her chest…pressed softly again his.

So this was the feeling of her chest. This was the feeling Naruto felt on his face. This softness…it was _heaven_. Is this why Kankuro itched to touch the busts of women? Is this why he wanted to kill Naruto earlier? Because he felt the softness Gaara never got to feel until now? The reasoning seemed off. But Gaara settled with that. It scared him to think there's a deeper reason of his earlier desire to kill.

Hinata was still hugging him. In fact, she froze. Why had she done that? She didn't expect him to agree easily but when he nodded, she just felt happy. Just because Gaara agreed for her to know him better, doesn't mean she could just jump on him. But the feel of him close to her was comforting despite her action being absurd. His hands remained on his sides but Hinata wasn't expecting him to hug her back.

What will he do? She was still clinging to him. And there was no sign of her pulling back any time soon. What on earth was he supposed to do?! It was then he realized his hands lay helplessly on his sides. Should he place it around her? He certainly felt like doing so.

Hinata was about to release him after she finally calmed her pulsing nerves when she felt his hands slowly go around her waist and pulling her closer to him. He was hugging her back! Oh kami! The Kazekage was hugging her and her nerves began pulsating once again! Her heart beat rapidly in her chest and her face began to heat up…_fast!_ What was happening to her?! This wasn't supposed to be happening! All she planned was to talk to Gaara and _this_ certainly didn't look like talking! This was physical contact for heaven's sake!

He can feel her erratic heartbeat against his. Or was it his heartbeat? Oh well, not that he really cared. All he wanted to focus on was her feel against him. Her waist was small, her arms were slim, her busts were…well, the opposite size. Overall, Hyuuga Hinata was very feminine despite her efforts of concealing it. She fits perfectly against him and it made him feel…happy. It was a rare feeling for Gaara, but at that moment, he welcomed it with open arms.

They stayed like that for who-knows-how-long. Neither spoke a word. They just basked themselves in each other's arms. It was a different way of knowing, but, it worked just as fine…well, maybe even better.

"Hinata…" Gaara whispered against her ear that sent shivers down her spine. "I have to go." He certainly didn't want to let go just yet, but he still has some responsibilities and duties to attend to. So he didn't have a choice.

For a split second, Hinata felt disappointment, although she wasn't really sure why. Alright, maybe she _does_ know. But she hates to admit she was disappointed that he has to go and she has to let him. She released her hold around Gaara's neck and looked at him. He was handsome, especially under the moonlight. His jade eyes were staring back at her. There was a gleam of happiness in his eyes that made Hinata smile.

"I almost forgot to thank you" she said.

Gaara stared back at her, his eyes now held confusion. He didn't ask the question but Hinata could already read it.

"I want to thank you for keeping me and Naruto-kun from falling to the ground earlier." Hinata said as her smile widened.

Oh, that. It wasn't really his intention to send his sand below Hinata. He planned on shielding her from Naruto. But since he was a second too late, considering Naruto's speed just reached the level beyond human capacity just from Tsunade's rage, he had to settle for saving the two of them from the impact of falling to the hard ground…though he regretted that action as soon as he saw their position. He really should've sent his sand on Naruto and flung him away. But then again, he respected him. So that would probably not happen.

As soon as he realized Hinata was still waiting for his response, he quickly gave her a nod and stood up to leave. He grabbed the gourd with him and clasped it to his back. Hinata stood up as well and watched Gaara turn and start to walk away.

"Good night, Gaara" Hinata said in a soft voice.

Gaara abruptly stopped and slowly turned his head to Hinata. Having someone greet you or bid you farewell really was great. "Good night…" he paused letting his lips form a smile. "Hinata" he finished and left.

That smile definitely did _not_ make her heart flutter. Or so what Hinata kept telling herself. Gaara did make her feel strange. It made her feel like she was gradually turning back to her usual self. The old Hinata who was able to show what she feels, the Hinata who used to…love. No! All she wanted was to befriend Gaara. Her resolve had nothing to do with it! It won't be affected at all! It won't…

Hinata stared blankly at her favorite place. She had the feeling Gaara would come back the next day. And she'll be there waiting for him. After all, the place eventually became their meeting place.

And they both knew that.

* * *

It was still dawn when Kankuro together with Gaara, Temari, Naruto and a few other Konoha ninjas were standing in front of the gates of Konoha. They were seeing the puppeteer off since it was the day Kankuro will leave for Suna to be the Kazekage while Gaara's not around.

"Nah! I don't need an escort, Naruto" Kankuro said with a confident smile.

"Okay, if you insist" Naruto said as he placed his hands behind his head.

"Kankuro, be careful" Temari said. "Gaara and I wish you a safe travel."

Kankuro's gaze went from Temari to Gaara then back to Temari. He flashed them a grin. "Of course" he said. "Well, I better get going!"

Naruto nodded with a smile on his face.

"Oh! I almost forgot, Naruto!" Kankuro suddenly exclaimed.

Naruto's eyes widened on the puppeteer. "What?"

Kankuro leaned in to whisper on the blond ninja's ear. "How was Hinata-chan's breasts? Are they softer than they looked?" he whispered.

Naruto couldn't suppress a grin and a blush as his pervert side kicked in. "Yeah, they were pretty nice and _very _soft!" he replied in a hushed tone so that only the both of them can hear.

However, much to their chagrin and horror, someone heard it. Specifically a pink-haired kunoichi that was just behind their backs. Both Kankuro and Naruto reluctantly turned their heads and stare in complete and utter terror at Sakura.

"SHANNAROOOOOO!"

Horrified screams echoed throughout the village as the sun began to rise. It was quite a lovely way to start the morning, don't you think?

"I say you deserve something far much worse, Kankuro" Temari bluntly said to her no longer discernible brother who lay flat on the ground.

"Naruto, you pervert!" shouted Sakura, her hands gripped Naruto's collar. "Whispering perverted things about Hinata! Is that how you treat someone you love?!"

That caught Gaara's attention. His head shot up and his gaze from Kankuro moved to Naruto and Sakura. Temari immediately noticed this and looked warily at her red-haired brother beside her. His eyes widened slightly as he eyed the two.

Did Gaara just hear that right? Naruto, he…

"Sakura, they were just boobs. There's nothing perverted about that." Naruto corrected. His face was comically beaten black-and-blue.

"Shut up! It's the same!" Sakura retorted. "Are you even serious about Hinata, you idiot?!"

"O-of course, I am!" Naruto quickly replied. "But, you know I can't help it!"

_Uh-oh_, the direction of the conversation isn't good! At least to Temari, it wasn't. Gaara just discovered Naruto's feelings for Hinata. If she doesn't stop it now, she won't know where this will lead to. And Gaara had just started to have feelings for Hinata, too.

"Uh, guys, we should really give Kankuro a proper goodbye. Don't you all think so?" Temari interjected.

Sakura stopped yelling and released Naruto unceremoniously. "Right" Sakura said with a smile. Naruto immediately sprang to his feet and nodded his head in agreement.

Kankuro slowly stood up. _"That's why I don't like girls with non-existent boobs and butt. They're way too scary!" _he thought with a sigh. "Then, I'll take my leave. Bye!" Kankuro said with a smile as he took off.

As soon as Kankuro was out of sight, Naruto exclaimed, "Okay! Let's get back to work, everyone!"

"Gaara…" Temari gingerly called. Naruto and the others had already gone, leaving two of them alone. She wondered what could possibly go on in Gaara's mind. His eyes held several emotions that Temari couldn't decipher. "Gaara, are you alright?" she tried once more.

This seemed to snap Gaara back to reality. He gave Temari a strange look. He seemed confused about something. But Temari wouldn't ask him for the meantime.

She gave her brother a small smile. "Let's go back?" she asked. Gaara just nodded his head.

* * *

"_Whispering perverted things about Hinata! Is that how you treat someone you love?!"_

Someone Naruto loves? Gaara was certain Sakura was asking about Hinata. So, Naruto loves…_Hinata_?

"_Are you even serious about Hinata, you idiot?!"_

"_O-of course, I am!"_

Hinata who?

"…ra! Gaara!" Temari called.

Gaara's eyes fixed on his sister. How long has she been calling him? When did he get back to his room? He was even seated on his chair reviewing reports from Suna.

Temari's face contorted with worry. "Are you alright? You were spacing out" she said. Her hands were pressed on the table in front of him.

Yeah, he figured as much. He did try to concentrate on his work rather than think about Naruto's conversation with Sakura. So many questions were on his mind and he was having a hard time on not asking.

Being a perceptive sister she is, Temari asked Gaara, "Do you want to ask anything? I'll try and answer them honestly."

Gaara just stared at his sister. He didn't know whether to accept her offer or not. He did want to have answers. However, although he hates to admit it, he was afraid of what he'll know.

"Come on, Gaara. If you want to focus on your work, then get rid of what's bugging your mind first." Temari said.

She's right. Gaara won't be able to finish his work if he's filled with questions. And so, he looked straight into Temari's green eyes and asked, "Does Naruto have feelings for Hinata?"

* * *

It was afternoon and there were a lot of people going about in the streets of Konoha. Instead of working, Gaara aimlessly walked in the streets. He realized he still couldn't focus on his responsibilities. What kept on replaying on his mind was a major distraction that he couldn't get rid of.

"_Does Naruto have feelings for Hinata?"He had asked Temari._

_Temari looked at him with wide eyes. But then, her expression turned to worry. "As I've heard, Naruto did love Hinata…in the past. I'm not sure about it, Gaara. But all I know is that Naruto once confessed to Hinata. I don't know what happened then"_

If it's true that Naruto still has feelings for Hinata, then Gaara wouldn't wonder why. Hyuuga Hinata, from what he experienced himself, was a wonderful and a very gentle person. Anyone could easily like her. And the crowd always around her was enough proof of it. Naruto is an energetic person. He has the capability to change a person like he did with Gaara. These two people match perfectly. If ever the both of them would end up together, then he would support them. Naruto is a friend whom he highly respects. And Hinata…

Gaara felt a sharp stabbing pain in his chest. He immediately held the part of him where he felt the pain and frowned in puzzlement. What was that? What _on earth_ was…_that? _Suddenly, the fleeting image of Hinata in his arms made his heart skip a beat.

Maybe something is wrong with his heart. Now that he thinks about it, he doesn't seem to be himself lately. Better go find a doctor to check out what's happening to him…_this instant_.

Determined to go to the hospital, he turned his head only to see Hinata surrounded by a bunch of guys. But the conversation of the two women that he passed by made him stop short on his tracks.

"Hyuuga Hinata really is something, ain't she?" a woman with auburn hair said to the other beside her.

"Yeah, to think she used to be a really shy girl." The black-haired woman answered. "Does she even like any among those guys?"

"I think not. But I heard she used to like the sixth Hokage even when he was still a genin. She even confessed to him during the battle with the Akatsuki leader," said the auburn-haired woman.

"Really?" the black-haired woman asked in surprise. "I didn't know she liked the sixth. Did he like her too?"

"I'm not really sure. But some say he confessed to her when she no longer had feelings for him. So now, Hokage-sama is one of Hyuuga Hinata's suitors. I guess he's trying to win her back."

"Well, I hope they end up together." The black-haired woman commented.

"I hope not!" the auburn-haired woman said. "If someone would end up with Hokage-sama, it will be me."

The black-haired woman laughed. "Dream on…"

Gaara froze on his spot. Not only did he discovered that Naruto likes Hinata, he just learned that Hinata…likes Naruto…

The sharp stabbing pain earlier returned, only a little worse. Gaara placed a hand to his throbbing chest. _"What's wrong with me?"_ he thought.

"Gaara?" Hinata's soft voice called to him.

Gaara raised his head and saw Hinata looking back at him. She was still surrounded by the guys but they were all silent and just watched the Kazekage, some with disinterest and the others with confusion…or fear. They were wondering as to why Hinata paid attention to him.

"Are you all right?" Hinata asked, regarding the hand clutched tightly on his chest. She took a step forward but stopped. She didn't know what she should do.

Gaara just nodded his head and slowly released his hold on his chest. His clothes became all wrinkly due to his death grip.

"…_She used to like the sixth Hokage…"_

"_She even confessed to him…"_

Why did it matter to him? He couldn't understand! He isn't someone who pries on other people's lives!

"_But all I know is that Naruto once confessed to Hinata. I don't know what happened then" Temari had said to him._

Then why did this topic matter so much to him?! Why does he care?! What was the pain he felt?!

"Hinata," his voice came out restrained. "I want to talk to you…" then he glanced at the men around her. "…in private" he finished.

Hinata nodded her head and immediately excused herself from the group. She walked beside Gaara as she led him to a park bench. There were no people near enough to hear them talk.

They sat quietly beside each other. Gaara's head filled with what Temari told him about Hinata's story. She had said Hinata liked someone. So, was that someone…Naruto? He had to know.

Gaara turned to Hinata. She was eyeing him curiously. "Tell me your relationship with Naruto." It wasn't a question. It was an order.

Hinata's eyes widened with surprise. What did he say?

"Hinata, tell me your relationship with Naruto" Gaara repeated. There was intensity in his stare.

"W-we're friends" Hinata said.

"No," he shook his head, his eyes remained on hers. "Tell me what happened between you two in the past."

Hinata found it hard to talk. What was he going on about? What past? "Gaara, I don't know what you're talking about…" she muttered.

"Yes, you do" he quickly said. "I happen to know about what happened three years ago."

Hinata couldn't hide her astonishment. _"But that's impossible! How did Gaara know?"_ she thought in disbelief.

It was as if Gaara was able to read her thoughts that he said, "Temari told me about it."

"T-temari-san?" Hinata echoed with surprise. _"But…no one knows about it except Tenten-san."_ She thought.

"So, tell me," Gaara said as he looked deep into her. "Were you in love with Naruto?"

Hinata looked away. Tenten… she hadn't expected her to tell Temari. "I…" she paused. "I don't want to talk about it."

Gaara stared at her expressionless face. She wasn't showing any emotions but she looked so…_sad_. He sighed. "Hinata, you told me last night you wanted to know me better." He stated in a monotone. "Now I'm telling you the same thing."

Hinata turned to look at Gaara only to find him staring back at her.

"I also wanted to know you better" Gaara said. "Will you allow me to?"

Hinata just stared into his jade eyes. He was asking the same thing she asked him last night. How could she ever refuse? She sighed in submission. "I…" she started, looking away. "I used to love Naruto."

So it was true… his heart felt like it was being twisted into multiple knots. He frowned. Something really was wrong with him. Probably a heart disease…he has to check later. "Did…did he confess to you?" he almost whispered. His voice didn't seem to come out like how he wanted it to.

"Yes," Hinata replied. "He did."

"But who did you see him with?"

It took Hinata a while to answer. "Sakura-san"

Gaara's eyes widened. Haruno Sakura? It was true Naruto did used to like her.

"But they don't seem to be together as…you know…a couple." She muttered. "I wonder what happened."

Gaara slightly nodded. "Haven't you asked him?" he muttered.

"What?" her gaze went back to him.

"Haven't you asked Naruto why he did that?"

Hinata fell silent. No, she didn't ask him the reason why he kissed Sakura. She was scared to know the answer. So she never brought it up. Instead, she closed herself from him…and probably from everyone too.

"Why didn't you?" Gaara pressed.

Hinata didn't say anything and just continued to stare at the ground.

"Hinata –"

"I was scared" she quickly interjected. "I was afraid… to know his reason."

Hinata's face remained blank but her voice quivered, Gaara noted. She became like this because of Naruto. Though Naruto kissed Sakura, Hinata was also to blame since she hadn't tried asking him his reason. "Then, you're a coward" he stated.

Hinata's eyes widened at him. What did he just call her? A _coward_? She's…a coward?

"You let your fear overwhelm you" he said. "That fear separated you from him." He wasn't sure why he was telling her this. But he couldn't just believe Naruto would do something as ridiculous as what he was told. Maybe, just maybe, he has a very good reason regarding his action. "Try asking him, Hinata. I'm sure Naruto has an explanation to that." He said as he stood up. "Thank you for your time." And then, Gaara left.

Hinata remained seated, staring blankly at the ground before her. "I…should ask him?" she mumbled to herself, her voice shook. "It's too late for that. I have…given up."

* * *

**A/N: I confess I'm having a difficult time developing the relationship of Gaara and Hinata. As you already know, my story is a slow development type of relationship. So please tell me if I'm going too fast or too slow…or neither. Tell me how I can improve it. I'm in **_**desperate **_**need of your suggestions, ideas, advices, etc. I'd be really happy if you tell me.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Once again, thank you for the reviews. I read all of it and I thank you for your opinions. I welcome all your suggestions and ideas, so please tell me :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 12**

That same afternoon, the replies from other villages regarding the Naoshi clan arrived. It was indicated that they had already begun their search and will report once they had finished.

"Right, so all we have to do now is to know where the bandits are located, huh?" Naruto said after he finished reading the replies back in his office. "Gaara?" he curiously looked at the red-head in front of him.

Gaara clearly wasn't paying attention. His own thoughts wandered.

"_You let your fear overwhelm you. That fear separated you from him." he had said to her._

Why had he said that to Hinata? It wasn't any of his business. It never will. However, his actions earlier that afternoon contradicted his principles. That's been happening a lot lately. For this reason, next time, he'll _really _stop himself from poking into other's businesses, _her _business.

"_Then, you're a coward" _

He kept cursing himself for calling her that…even now. In fact, he _hates_ himself for calling her a coward. But that line of thought made him confused. Why does he hate himself despite it being the truth?

Should he have been kinder in telling her? Maybe he should have not told her bluntly. But then again, Sabaku no Gaara was straight to the point.

"_I should find Hinata and apologize" _Gaara thought as he stood from his seat. But he immediately caught himself and slowly sat back down. He wasn't going to apologize. He didn't do anything wrong, right?

Naruto curiously watched Gaara. It was rare for him to be lost in his thoughts, especially when he's not alone in a room. "Gaara, you're acting stupid" Naruto said with a grin.

Gaara snapped back to reality. He glanced over Naruto. "And I'm hearing that from someone who's grinning like an idiot" he deadpanned.

Naruto chuckled. "So? Something wrong?"

Gaara just shook his head in response.

Shortly after, there came a knock on the door. Naruto immediately gave permission to enter. The door opened and came in Hinata.

She gave the room a quick scan only to find Gaara sitting in front of Naruto's table staring at her. She looked away and saw Naruto dashing towards her for a hug.

"Hinata-chan!" Naruto exclaimed as he pulled Hinata into a hug. "Thanks for coming!"

"Uh…" Hinata tried to think fast. For a second there, she felt like her heart would leave her chest to her surprise to Naruto's action. Not to mention, his loud mouth was close to her ear. "Sakura-san asked me to help you in her stead" she finally said.

Upon seeing Naruto draw Hinata in his arms, Gaara felt a terrible itch to force his sand down Naruto's throat. But being a sensible man that he is, he held his ground, despite feeling like he'd been punched in his gut. After his talk with Hinata, he forgot to go to the hospital for check-up if he had some kind of disease. He was too disturbed in his thoughts.

Naruto released Hinata but his hands remained on her shoulders. "Yeah, I really need help today" he said. "There're a lot of mission requests lately and I have to read through _all_ of them"

Hinata wasn't sure if she was willing to help anymore. Not when Gaara was there, not after what he told her. She can even feel his eyes on her. And she was trying her best _not _to look back at was an awkward atmosphere, though Naruto seemed to be the only one who hadn't noticed. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Naruto-kun," she started. "Should I come back later? I might disturb you" she finished. Oh how she hoped Naruto would let her leave! She didn't want to be alone in a room with two people who made her feel…weird. It would be fine if it was only Naruto since he's oblivious to almost anything. But Gaara, on the other hand, wasn't. Hinata had the feeling she would suffocate if she'll stay.

But it seemed luck wasn't with her.

"It's fine, Hinata-chan! We'll work while I'm discussing with Gaara!" Naruto said with a grin. "You won't mind right, Gaara?" he asked the silent red-head.

Gaara's eyes remained on Hinata. She looked like she wanted to flee. And why won't she? He said some unpleasant things to her. Gaara knows when he's not wanted. Ideally, he would leave. But this time was different, to his confusion and surprise. He didn't care that Hinata was uncomfortable because of him. He would stay and observe her. So, in response to Naruto's question, he nodded his head.

Naruto's grin widened as he turned to Hinata. He draped an arm around her shoulder and exclaimed, "See Hinata-chan? You won't disturb anything!"

Hinata felt an immense urge to groan. This has got to be the worst day of her life. Hinata was uncomfortable not only because of Gaara but also because of the proximity between her and Naruto! His arm was around her, he was touching her! All she wanted to do was to push him away and escape the room. But she clearly knows that she can't do that. That would leave Naruto suspicious of her and Gaara to rest his case of his remark about her. And that's the last thing she wanted.

"Where will I sit and work, then?" Hinata asked, forcing a smile.

Naruto pointed to a chair beside his. "I prepared that for you earlier. You're sitting beside me!" he beamed.

_Just great…_But then again, sitting beside Gaara would be much worse at the moment. How long is he planning to look at her? "O-okay…" Hinata muttered as she sat down, at the same time, trying not to meet Gaara's gaze. Naruto followed shortly and sat down on his chair beside her. Hinata wasted no time in getting to work. A distraction from Gaara's intense stare was much needed and welcomed.

"We really need a strategist for this, especially when we don't know who we are up against." Naruto said to Gaara. "I would've called Shikamaru but, unfortunately, I sent him on a mission." Naruto's oblivious as ever to what's going on between the two other people in the room.

Gaara's eyes darted to Naruto, much to Hinata's relief. "The Nara's father, then" he suggested.

"Nara Shikaku? He's on a mission too" Naruto said. Without warning, he slapped his forehead. "GAH! I'm such an idiot! I should have left at least one of them!" he exclaimed.

Gaara's face remained impassive as he watched the blond ninja whine. "We don't have a choice. We can no longer waste time. We'll form a plan to capture the bandits without them." Gaara said. His gaze landed once more to the silent heiress and watched her shoulders stiffen. "_So, she is sensitive to her surroundings" _he thought. "I'll call Temari. She may be of help to us" he said to Naruto.

"That would be great" Naruto agreed.

* * *

Temari was itching to interrogate her brother. She paced restlessly outside the office of the Hokage. A single mistake…a _single _mistake on her part ruined everything! Her plan to get Gaara and Hinata together was already going smoothly…until that damn oversight came into play!

"_YOU TOLD YOUR BROTHER?!" Tenten had shouted at her when she spotted Temari walking idly on the streets. The people around curiously looked at them with a mix of surprise on their faces. _

"_What are you going on about?" Temari asked, annoyed at the sudden outburst of the brunette._

_Tenten took a deep breath so as not to shout again. "I found Hinata looking depressed on a park bench earlier. She said she had a talk with your brother."_

"_Wait…Hinata? Depressed? That's new..." Temari commented._

"_I know! That's why I was shocked!" Tenten exclaimed. "She has never looked depressed these days. She never shows it on her face. So – hey! That's not what I came here for!"_

"_Then what? Hurry up and spit it out!"_

"_As I said, she had a talk with your brother." Tenten started, her face contorting to fury. "Hinata said Gaara knew of what happened three years ago! She said that YOU told him!" she shouted as she pointed an accusing finger at Temari._

_Temari's eyes widened as realization dawned on her. "Crap!" she muttered. "I forgot to tell Gaara to keep it a secret!"_

_Tenten's eyes widened for a moment then narrowed. "So YOU told him" she didn't ask. She stated._

_Temari turned defensive. "Well, he was curious at that time! He was having a fever so, in order to ease his seemingly-endless suffering, I answered his questions and told him her story!"_

"_It was supposed to be a secret! Because of what you did, Hinata was disappointed in me!" Tenten shouted. "Oh kami! She hates me now!"_

"_She told you she hates you?" Temari asked in disbelief._

"_No," Tenten replied, a frown on her face. "But any person would if they were on her shoes."_

_Temari blanched. She didn't want Hinata to hate her. It was like being hated by your little sister. It hurts!_

"_How will I make it up to her now?" Tenten practically whined. "How will you make it up to me?!"_

"_I'll make my plan work, dammit!" Temari yelled. "I'm still in the middle of doing so. Just let me make it work."_

_Tenten fell silent. Then she quietly asked, "What do you have?"_

_Temari's face turned smug. "You said you saw Hinata depressed, right?"Tenten nodded and Temari continued, "Let me tell you that that was the result of my plan in action" she said with a smirk._

_Tenten's face slightly softened with assurance. But it soon contorted with worry. "How are we going to face her now?"_

Damn, the brunette's right. Earlier when she spotted Hinata walking in the direction of the Hokage's office, which was in front of Temari, she instinctively hid somewhere. She admits that she's afraid of Hinata's reaction when she sees her. She didn't want to picture out an angry Hinata…or worse, an ignoring Hinata. Temari hates silent treatment more than anything! Although she was used to Gaara's silence, at least he responds if he feels the need to.

"Temari, come inside" she suddenly heard Gaara's voice call her behind the door.

She'll go inside?! But Hinata's there!

However, Temari doesn't need to be told twice. Reluctantly, she opened the door to the office. She found Naruto and Gaara looking at her while Hinata, who was sitting beside Naruto, bowed her head. She looked so tense. Was it because of her? Maybe Hinata doesn't want to see her. Oh kami, she can't stand this! Unfortunately, she has to force herself to come inside. She put on her expressionless mask and closed the door behind her.

"Yes?" Temari asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"We're formulating a plan to capture the bandits. We need your help" Gaara explained. His attention returned to Hinata for the umpteenth time.

Temari silently followed Gaara's gaze and noticed Hinata tense up more. She stopped herself from sighing in relief. So it wasn't her, it was just Gaara. What the hell did her brother told her that made her act like that? And they were just starting to get comfortable with each other! Damn it!

"So, any ideas?" Naruto asked.

Temari's focus went to the subject at hand. "Capturing the bandits, huh?" she muttered. Then, she snapped her fingers as an idea came to mind. "How about a bait?" she suggested.

"A bait?" Naruto echoed.

"Exactly" Temari nodded. "The bandits capture a Naoshi, right? Then we'll have a Naoshi as bait. And we'll be there to wait for the bandits."

"But they have a sensor with them, you know" Naruto said.

Temari felt the urge to roll her eyes. "Duh! We'll hide our chakra."

Naruto nodded in understanding. "That could work. What do you say, Gaara?"

Gaara just nodded his head in agreement.

"Once we capture those who'll come, we could interrogate them to where their hideout is. We'll capture the remaining bandits, then we can close this case" Temari added rather proudly.

Naruto beamed. "Great! All we need to do is to set the right time for it!"

* * *

It was weird…

Everytime Gaara looks at Hinata, he experiences certain things that are new to him; such as feeling his heart do a somersault or feeling like only Hinata and he are present in a roomful of people. It seemed like _only_ Hinata mattered to the world. This didn't happen just once, but a few times already. Her very presence earlier in the room made it hard for him to pay attention to the discussion.

Gaara was back in his room, reviewing reports in Suna. The meeting ended earlier than expected so he was using the time to do his work.

But Gaara was still bothered by his thoughts…of Hinata. He was particularly wondering about his relationship with the heiress. He considers Hinata as a friend, if not an acquaintance. But he has a feeling that she's more than that to him.

A best friend, maybe? That doesn't really put it quite right.

It's different with Naruto, since he considers the blond his best friend. Maybe because Hinata's a woman and Naruto's a man that the feeling between the two of them is different?

Whatever it is, Gaara was determined to find the answer.

* * *

Gaara spent the remaining of the afternoon visiting – no, looking for…more like close to stalking – friends around Konoha. Just a glance at them would suffice to answer his gnawing questions. And to his frustration, not one of them, men or the fairer gender, arouse within him the feelings he get whenever he's in the presence of the blue haired heiress. Is this what they call a "crush"?

Gaara felt his face heat up. That's impossible…right?

_Right?!_

He immediately shrugged the idea off his mind, though it wasn't an easy feat. Sabaku no Gaara does not know the meaning of crush or anything related to that. It would be preposterous to think that _he _would have a…a…

Nevermind. He doesn't want to think about it anymore.

He looked up at the sky. He hadn't noticed it was already evening. There were only a few remaining people on the streets, most of them closing their shops or stores.

He hasn't done at least one of the things he has to do today. He was tired…mentally. A part of him wanted to go to the waterfall place, where he knows Hinata would be. But seeing her earlier that afternoon, Gaara knew she didn't want to talk to him for what he had said to her.

However, that didn't stop him from turning on his heel and walking to the direction of their meeting place.

It didn't take long before he arrived. He spotted Hinata sitting down near the waterfall, her back facing him. He could hear her quiet sobs as he slowly walked towards her.

Hinata knew Gaara was there but she didn't acknowledge his presence. Not this time. She could feel him looking at her as he stopped just behind her back.

"Why are you crying?" She heard him ask in his usual monotone.

"Why am I crying?" Hinata repeated in a whisper as she wiped the tears from her face. It wasn't likely for Hinata to lose her temper. But this time, she could feel her anger rising. Unfortunately, Gaara caught her in a wrong mood and in a wrong time, especially because he was the main reason for her grief. "_Why_…am _I_…crying?!" she abruptly stood up and turned around. She locked gazes with Gaara, her eyes ablaze with fury. "WHOSE FAULT DO YOU THINK IT IS?!" She shouted.

Gaara couldn't hide the shock on his face. Hinata just shouted. She just shouted…at him!

"You ask me why I'm crying! You know why!" she yelled. She was willing herself not to cry in front of someone but failed miserably as tears ran down her pale face. "You're not an idiot, Gaara! You can very well figure out the reason!" her voice quivered and she closed her eyes as her tears continued to flow out.

Gaara was speechless. He stood in front of her, frozen. He didn't know what to do. Temari never had times like this, so he was currently clueless as to what should be done.

"You still don't know?" Hinata asked bitterly. She didn't wait for his reply and said, "I'll tell you, then. I cried because of what you said. That I'm a coward!"

He looked at her with an expressionless face. Her usually gentle and calm face was contorted with anger and sadness.

"And you're right! I'm a coward!" she continued, her voice mellowing as she went on. "And I blame myself for that. I blame my own fear for not being able to ask him. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm weak. I'm sorry for not being good enough. I'm sorry because it hurts seeing the man I loved for years in the arms of another woman. I did my best to be the one for him. But my best was never enough. I was scared, I admit. But I can't handle anymore heartbreaks. That's why I gave up. If another is destined to make him happy then I should be happy for them both…because…I _loved_ Naruto-kun."

Gaara didn't know what got to him as he pulled Hinata into his arms. She looked and sounded so sad and…alone. It made his insides feel like it shattered into a million pieces. He held her close and rested his chin on the crown of her head. He heard her gasp and stiffen against him for a moment before he felt her relax and cried her heart out.

The arms that held her felt warm and strong. Never had she felt the kind of security and calmness seep into her heart like this one did. Gaara's masculine scent made her feel like she can tell him everything. From her joys to her greatest fears and never would she be hurt. Gaara gently stroked her long hair and this made her sigh contentedly. This gesture on Gaara's part was surprising. Who would have thought that the Kazegake can become this gentle and kind? Hinata felt she can face anything after this. Finally calming down, she gently pushed away, a little hesitant to leave the comforting arms around her, and looked up into Gaara's jade eyes that captivated her so much.

"Forgive me" she softly said.

His face remained impassive but Hinata could see the confusion in his eyes as he asked, "For what?" It kind of became his habit to ask the same question to her every time she says sorry.

"For losing my temper and for taking it out on you" she replied. Her eyes lowered to his chest and she gasped. Gaara followed her gaze and found his clothes damp in the chest area where Hinata cried. "I'm so sorry for wetting your clothes!" she said as she ran a hand on his chest. She felt him shaking and as she curiously looked up at Gaara's face, she found him trying his hardest to hold back his laughter but failing terribly. This was not the first time she heard Gaara laugh, but his relaxed expression and the sound of his laughter still surprises her. Laughter made Gaara's features look boyish and more mysterious under the moonlight.

"It really suits you, Gaara, to have a smile on your face." Hinata thought out loud before she could stop herself. Gaara's laughter stopped. His eyes widened at Hinata but his face immediately softened. A smile formed on his lips and a blush grazing his cheeks made Hinata flash him one of her own warm smile.

"You should smile often" Hinata said.

"Why?" Gaara asked, still with a smile.

"Because…" Hinata trailed off as she looked away from him, a blush coloring her cheeks.

"Because what, Hinata?" Gaara coaxed her to continue.

"Because you…you look…" she stammered. _Great_…her stuttering was back…

"I look what?"

"Oh, because you look cute when you smile!" she exclaimed, her face turning beet red. Hinata watched Gaara's smile falter. He quickly looked away and she watched his face in amusement turn different shades of red until it matched the color of his hair…or maybe more, if that was even possible. He had a hand covering his mouth as if it could hide the redness of his entire face.

"Gaara, you're blushing!" Hinata said in awe, her own blush fading. Her remark only made Gaara blush deeper to the extent that it made him feel dizzy. Hinata giggled.

Gaara took a deep breath to calm himself. His heart was still beating wildly in his chest. He was caught off guard when Hinata called him cute. It even made him unable to stop his face from heating up. It was embarrassing.

As soon as he was able to calm his nerves, Gaara straightened up and crossed his arms in his chest. His face became impassive once again. But he found himself unable to look directly into Hinata's eyes. "Hinata," he started as he cleared his throat. "I also want to take this opportunity to apologize for the things I have said that offended you." He said.

Hinata looked at him, surprised, but didn't say anything.

"I also want to apologize for meddling in your personal life…in your," he paused and frowned at the words he was about to say. "Love life" he finished.

She smiled. "Gaara, you didn't have to apologize. In fact, I thank you for doing so" she said. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have enough courage to try and ask Naruto-kun."

"You're going to ask him?" Gaara couldn't help but ask.

Hinata nodded. "Tomorrow" she said. "I'm still scared of what he'll say. But I want to know. I want to hear it directly from him."

Gaara just gave her a small smile. In response, Hinata wrapped her arms around Gaara's waist and pulled him into a hug. This surprised Gaara but he soon had his arms wrapped around Hinata as he pulled her closer to him.

"Thank you, Gaara" Hinata softly said. "You're a kind and good friend."

"I'm kind and good?" Gaara asked with a hint of disbelief in his voice that made Hinata giggle.

"Yes, you're _very_ kind and good" she replied. "Or maybe, even more than that" she added.

Gaara fell silent as he pondered on Hinata's compliments. No one has ever told him that before. Not ever since the day he was born. And hearing it from someone who was gentle and kind herself, made Gaara happy. "Thank you…Hinata"

* * *

"N-naruto-kun, can I talk to you for a while?" Hinata asked the next day inside the Hokage's office.

This is it.

The moment of truth. The moment she thought would never come. The day she'll ask Naruto of his reason regarding what happened three years ago between him and Sakura. The time has finally come.

"Sure, Hinata-chan!" Naruto beamed. "What is it?"

Hinata looked at the ground beneath her. Oh kami! She was nervous…_very_ nervous. How she wished Gaara was there! Just his presence would be enough to encourage and assure her.

"Um…" she began awkwardly, her eyes wandered almost everywhere in the room except to Naruto. "I would like to ask you…something."

"Yeah?"

"It's about what happened thr –" Hinata got cut off by a very loud bang behind her indicating the opening of the wooden door to the room.

"Jeez, Sakura-chan! Don't destroy my door again!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Well, I wouldn't be doing this if you just had your almighty Hokage ass on the meeting room now!" Sakura retorted. "You're five minutes late, idiot!"

Naruto froze as realization hit him. "Oh crap! I forgot about the meeting!" He shouted, more to himself than to Sakura. Then to Hinata he said, "Sorry, Hinata-chan! I gotta go!" With that, the blond Hokage was gone in a flash.

"Hinata? Oh, you're here?! I didn't see you!" Sakura said apologetically. "Did you need Naruto for something?" she asked as she stepped inside the office and closed the door.

"N-nothing important" Hinata said. "What meeting is Naruto-kun attending?"

"It's a meeting with the council regarding the Naoshi clan. He's going to report about the plan he and the Kazekage came up with to capture the bandits." Sakura answered.

"He's going to be busy, then" Hinata stated.

"Yes, probably for the next few weeks or until the safety of the Naoshi clan" Sakura said.

Hinata suppressed a sigh. She had the feeling she would have a hard time asking Naruto alone.

* * *

**A/N: I want to thank my big sis for proofreading and for the few paragraphs she suggested. Well, what do you guys think? Sorry for the OOC, though. And I know you guys are dead tired on reading about the Naoshi blah blah blah (Believe me, I'm tired as well) But please, bear with me for just a little longer and they'll be gone in the story.**

**Reviews please! I need encouragement, you guys! If you have suggestions, ideas and whatnot, feel free to tell me!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: My school's starting this coming Tuesday…**_**not great…**_

**Special thanks (I found I'll keep putting this whenever I want to): ****Megane-usa-chan****, ****maxridelover**** and ****Ayumy Usagi**** for reviewing repeatedly. Love you guys!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Chapter 13**

The sight that greeted Temari was the last person she expected to see. Thus, her expression when she answered the door after hearing three knocks was reasonable. She was practically gaping with shock and confusion at the blue-haired heiress standing in front of her.

"Temari-san?" Hinata stared at the blonde kunoichi, surprised and confused herself. "I'm sorry I must've gotten the wrong room number" she said as she bowed and turned to leave.

Temari was able to find her voice the moment Hinata started walking away. "Wait, Hinata!" she called out, unconsciously reaching out a hand to her.

Hinata stopped and looked at Temari inquisitively over her shoulder. Her hair flowed down to the side of her face as she did so. "Yes?"

Oh, how she admits she wanted a cute little sister like this heiress in front of her! But no way would Temari say that out loud. "Do you need something from Gaara?" she asked, dropping back her raised arm to her side. It was Gaara's room. She just came there to check up on him if he's doing well, though her room was just beside his.

Hinata's eyes widened a bit as she nodded in response. "Is this his room?" she asked softly.

"Yeah" Temari answered. "Come in" she said, stepping aside and holding the door open for Hinata.

The heiress hesitated for a second, unsure if it's alright with Gaara for her to come in. But she stepped in anyway, not missing Temari's gaze on her as if she couldn't believe about something. "What is it, Temari-san? Do I have something on my face that shouldn't be there?" Hinata asked with a tinge of humor in her voice.

Temari would've giggled at Hinata's attempt of a joke, if only she wasn't nervous as hell of Hinata's reaction when she'll remember her dismay towards Temari. As much as Temari doesn't want to be the one to remind her, she has to get it out of her mind already. "Hinata," she started with a sigh. "Don't you hate me for what I did? I mean, I forced your friend to tell me your story three years ago. Not to mention, I even relayed it to Gaara. And I'm sorry about that."

Temari's head was downcast as she finished, missing the smile that formed on Hinata's lips. "I was angry, I admit" Hinata said and Temari felt her shoulders and heart pull her down. "But not to the point of hating Tenten-san and you, Temari-san" Hinata finished.

Temari's head jerked up to look at Hinata with wide eyes. "You…don't?" Relief flooded inside her as she saw Hinata's smile widen.

Hinata shook her head and said, "I don't hate you or Tenten-san. To be honest, my anger didn't last long. Because of what you did, I gained yet another great friend."

What a saint! Temari would've fainted from encountering such a forgiving person. But the look of confusion and curiosity crossed Temari's face as she asked, "Who?"

Hinata's face brightened, her eyes twinkled and a fair blush colored her pale cheeks. "Gaara" she said rather eagerly.

Temari certainly hadn't expected that. It even showed on her face. "You and…Gaara? I heard you guys had a talk and it hadn't ended well. You guys are alright now?" she asked almost disbelievingly.

"Yes. As I said, we're friends now" Hinata replied, still smiling. "We talked the other night."

Temari mentally smacked herself. Of course they'd be alright! She doubted Hinata would even be here if they're not. "Come to think of it, how unusual for you to be here, Hinata. Not that I'm complaining. What did you come here for?" she asked as she closed the still open door behind them and led Hinata inside the room.

"I came to give him the recently sent reports from Suna" Hinata answered while looking around the room. It was a huge homey place with cream-colored couches set on the left side of the room. In the middle of the couches was a table of dark wood with a small vase of flowers set atop of it. The room was illuminated by the bright morning light outside the rectangular window across the room. It was barely covered by the flowing white curtains hung at each side of the window. There was a wall dividing the left and right side of the room, a polished wooden door in its middle. It most probably led to the bedroom.

"Ah, I see…" Temari said, noticing for the first time the bundle of scrolls Hinata carried. She stopped in front of the door leading to the other side of the room and opened it. She stepped inside the room, Hinata followed suit.

There was a bed covered with white sheets at the far corner of the room. A small table was placed beside it. A rectangular window similar to the one in the living room was located near the bed, bathing the room with warm light. On the opposite corner was a wide rectangular table filled with piles of paper and scrolls. Gaara was seated on an office chair behind it, giving all his attention to his work that he didn't even bother raising his head to acknowledge Temari and Hinata's presence despite hearing the opening and closing of the door. But he did bother asking, "What took you so long?" he dryly asked, obviously to Temari.

"Guess who came to see you" Temari said to Gaara with a sly grin.

Whatever Gaara was doing, he immediately stopped from doing. He slowly raised his head to look at his blonde sister but his eyes were drawn instead to the one beside her.

Temari watched intently the ever-so-subtle change in Gaara's expression as he looked at Hinata. She was amused to see the slight widening of his eyes, the gleam of interest that followed it and the slight parting of his lips as he immediately recognized his unexpected visitor. But, of course, since it was Gaara, the hints he unconsciously gave away disappeared as fast as it came, leaving his expressionless façade.

"Hinata…" he muttered under his breath.

"Good morning, Gaara" Hinata greeted with a smile, a pink blush grazing her cheeks and a sparkle of emotion reflecting in her eyes.

Oh, how pleased Temari was in witnessing the exchange between the two! Her plan was working! Hell yeah, it's working! And she didn't even have to say or do anything to fix the _almost _broken relationship the two had. Oh kami, her mistake had a pleasing result! It's working!

…well…of course it's working. Temari mentally scoffed. It's her plan so it'll always work.

"I came to give you the reports from Suna. They just came in earlier" Hinata said as she approached Gaara's table and handed him the bundle wrapped around her arms.

Gaara accepted it and placed it on the side of his table before looking at Hinata again. "Strange…" he stated quietly. "Naruto usually sends someone else for this. I'm surprised he sent you since you help him on other matters inside his office."

Hinata looked away from his gaze to stare at his table. Her blush deepened as she said in a soft voice, "I…I planned on talking to you about it."

Gaara knew what she meant. And so his eyes darted to Temari who was still standing near the door, ignoring the pleased look plastered on her face.

Temari got the message and excused herself saying, "Well, I see I'm not wanted here so I'll leave you two love birds alone to get on with your business. Enjoy!" With that, she left, leaving Gaara and Hinata a bit flustered on what she said.

Clearing his throat, he said, "Sit down." He gestured to a seat in front of the table. Hinata did as she was told and quietly sat down on the chair. "How did it go? It's been three days" he asked after a moment of silence.

Hinata's face turned a little sad. "Yes, three days…to no avail" she softly said.

"You mean you haven't asked Naruto? Not even once?" he asked with a hint of incredulity in his voice.

Hinata sighed and nodded her head. "Naruto-kun has been busy these days. I tried to ask him in his office, but he would either be busy talking to Sakura-san or in a hurry for a meeting. I even attempted on asking him when he's at Ramen Ichiraku, but it's rude to disturb him during his meal and he couldn't stay long and would hurry back to his office."

Gaara listened and processed everything in his mind. "I see…" he muttered with a curt nod. "Earlier, you went to his office to try asking again and end up delivering these scrolls to me. Is that correct?"

Hinata's eyes fixed on his jade ones as she nodded. "He was ready to leave for a meeting and didn't have the time to call for someone. So, he was very happy when I arrived and gave me the task" she explained. Gaara just nodded in understanding. Hinata smiled as she said, "I guess I'll just have to ask him when he's not so busy anymore."

Gaara stared intently at Hinata. He just realized how patient she was. How considerate, forgiving, gentle, kind, understanding this woman sitting in front of him was. Not only does she possess such nice personality, she also got the appearance. She has beauty that made men chase after her, long for her, love her. Maybe even the women admired her and wished they were her. She was the complete package of an angel, a goddess worth worshipping. Whenever she smiles, her eyes would sparkle and her cheeks would color that it would take your breath away…_his_ breath away.

Wait…what the hell was he thinking? Gaara mentally shook his head and focused on Hinata more than his wandering thoughts about her. How Hinata could easily distract him with just her presence was beyond him. It's been three days since he stopped coming to the waterfall place. He wanted to focus solely on his work because most of the reports needed his immediate attention. So he wasn't able to talk to Hinata until now. But during those days, his mind would drift to Hinata. He wondered how she was doing, what she was doing, how long does she stay at their meeting place, does she wait for him, was she even expecting him to come…or not? He couldn't help but admit that he _missed_ Hinata. He hadn't realized how much, until now. Now that she's in his presence. He missed her soft voice, her pleasant and soothing smell, her warm smile, her laughs, her giggles, even her teasing. But most of all, he missed her feel against him. He missed hugging her…so much that as he continued to stare at her, ignoring the fact that she's growing uncomfortable under his gaze, he felt the familiar urge to draw her in his arms again.

"G-gaara…I-is there s-something on my f-face?" Hinata stuttered out, slightly frowning on her words. There it is again…her stuttering.

Snapping back to reality, Gaara just shook his head in response, finally looking away to continue doing his work. But whether he wanted Hinata to leave or not, he didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry, I must be bothering you. You're also busy so I guess I should take my leave" she said.

Hinata stood up about to go when Gaara stopped her. "Was that everything you wanted to say?" he asked in a monotone, his eyes remained on the papers and scrolls.

Hinata watched him write something on a paper before moving on to the next while she pondered on his question. "Yes, that was all" she said but her voice sounded like she wanted to say more. Gaara didn't fail to notice this, but he said nothing.

There was a moment of silence and all that can be heard was the scratching of Gaara's pen on the paper, the muffled voices of the people outside, and their slow and steady breathing.

"Um…Gaara?" Hinata squeaked, breaking the dragging silence. She watched Gaara's head slowly rise to look at her, his eyes inquisitive. Her breath hitched in her throat as she took in his sight for the first time since arriving in his room, the light from the window illuminating his features. He looked ethereal with the morning light on his pale skin. The sand on his face, instead of blemishing, improved his handsome features, reflecting light like tiny stars giving Hinata some thoughts that he's more than just a human.

A sexy god, that's to be sure.

He's downright…_stunning_. And that red hair, though ruffled recklessly, enhanced his boyish charm and made her heart did a double take. Heavens! Why does he look so devastatingly adorable with a messy hair? Then Hinata's eyes zoomed in to the character on his forehead. Without it, she's sure that Gaara would look like your typical good and shy guy. But no, he had to have it and it made her think of him a bad boy instead…a good-looking bad boy.

Gaara cocked his head to the side. "Hinata? What is it?" he asked. Though monotonously, his voice was surprisingly gentle.

Hinata's cheeks turned deep red, her eyes nervously scanned the ground beneath her. "I–ah–I…" she stammered. She mentally slapped herself for being unable to talk straight. But who could blame her? Her heart was uncontrollably hammering on her chest. All she wanted to say was three words. _Three_ words! And yet, she couldn't say it properly. She took a deep breath, at least to calm her nerves even a little. "I…I missed you, Gaara" she finally said, though her voice shook a bit. She _did_ miss him. Those three nights that he didn't come, those nights that she waited for him, those nights that she went home very late, to Neji's surprise. She waited, expected him, yet he didn't come. She felt disappointed, though she kept denying it. Why had she even waited for him? They didn't agree to meet up so she couldn't blame him at all.

Hinata waited breathlessly for his reaction. And she didn't have to wait long.

Gaara stiffened and his eyes widened. He sat motionless for a few seconds just gaping at her. Did he hear that right? Did she really say she missed…_him_?

Well, he missed her too.

_Too _much…

He stood up from his seat, none too slowly. His gaze fixed on Hinata's pale eyes as he slowly approached her. He noticed her tremble. She was nervous…and he wasn't any different. The thumping of his chest was the only thing he could hear as he stopped in front of her, about a foot away.

"Hinata…" Gaara whispered so softly that it sent shivers down her spine. Tentatively, he took a step forward, uncertain of her reaction. She didn't do anything, encouraging Gaara to take another step. And that's what he did. With one last step, he closed the gap between them. Hinata had to move her head back to keep the eye contact while Gaara had to bend his head down.

They stood _so_ close to each other that it felt like an eternity passed before Hinata spoke. "Gaara…m-may I…hug you?" she asked him, almost child-like. No. Not almost. Her face was innocence itself, for crying out loud!

Gaara's face was a bit flushed, but he didn't dare look away. Not when those pale eyes that kept staring at him enchanted him so much. "You may," he said in a quiet voice. "But…" he paused. "Only if you let me hug you."

Hinata's face lit up and she flashed him a warm smile. And he recently found out that every time she did so, it felt like his own heart would melt. It was strange, but _certainly_ pleasant. He was still confused of the emotions bubbling up inside him whenever he thinks about Hinata, but that didn't matter as of the moment.

Speaking of which…

BY THE SAND IN HIS GOURD, w_hen_ did he become such a romanticist?! Why was he even doing this? What was he saying?!

But all those questions inside his head immediately went down the drain as soon as he felt Hinata's arms wrap familiarly around his waist. It didn't take long before he did the same. They held each other tightly, not wanting to let go any sooner.

Gaara took a deep breath, inhaling and memorizing her scent. She smelled _so_ good…like lavender. It wasn't the first time they hugged each other, but it was the first time he was able to really take in her scent. "I missed you too, Hinata" he exhaled.

In response, Hinata pulled him closer. She buried her face to his chest, hiding her beet red face from him."How unfair…" she muttered, her voice muffled by his clothed chest. But Gaara can hear her, though barely. "Gaara can say it so easily while I can't" Hinata finished. She still didn't look up, so she didn't see the small smile on his face.

That's right…

She missed him; he missed her…that was enough reason for his actions.

But why did he miss Hinata so much? Maybe it was a hug he missed? But _no_. He was sure he missed Hinata herself. He asked Temari why, but he didn't really get an answer…or he just denied it.

"_Temari, what does it mean when you miss a person?" he had asked his sister yesterday when she arrived in his room for her 'daily check-ups'–or so she called._

"_Huh? Where did that come from?" Temari asked. Her faced showed surprised but turned mischievous almost immediately. "Does little Gaara miss someone? Hm, who is it?"_

_Although reluctantly, he admitted, "Hinata" He knew quite well that Temari won't stop bugging him if he won't answer that sort of question. Political questions he can avoid, but love questions…don't count on it._

_Temari's sly grin just widened. "Hinata, eh?" she chuckled evilly._

"_Tell me. What does it mean if I miss a person?" he repeated._

_Temari pondered on his question before saying, "Perhaps you mean 'what you feel' towards that person if you miss them."_

_Gaara barely shrugged. "Is there a difference?" he asked._

_Temari almost scowled at him, but she decided to ignore his remark. She cleared her throat and her grin came back. "Anyways, if you miss Hinata, it only means she's important to you" she said with confidence._

_For a second, Gaara fell silent. "How important?" he asked. True, Hinata was important to him. But how exactly does he see her? He wanted to know…_

_If Temari's smirk wasn't mischievous enough, then it just turned devilish. "Oh, I don't know," she began with a shrug. "Maybe you treat her as a friend, or a best friend, maybe even a sister–like me. Or perhaps…"she deliberately trailed off, glancing at Gaara to see his reaction._

_She's a friend? No. She's a best friend? No. She's a sister?! Kami, no. That'll be the last thing he'll see her as. "Perhaps…?" Gaara asked, telling Temari to go on._

"_Perhaps more than that" Temari replied. "Maybe you see her…let's say…more than a best friend?" she suggested._

"…_and what is that?" he was growing impatient. Temari was dragging her answers._

"_Maybe you're in love with Hinata" she said. "Now that I think about it, that's the most reasonable–"Temari's words got cut off the moment she turned her head to her brother. "Gaara…?"_

"_Th-that's impossible…"Gaara said with his face beet red._

_Temari couldn't believe what she was seeing. That was the first time she saw Gaara blush. And now, she was utterly speechless. So, she settled on gawking at her blushing-at-the-same-time-denying little brother._

He's in love with Hinata? Stop joking.

In fact, Temari was contradicting herself. She once told him that when you love someone, you'll do anything for them, what makes them happy will make you happy, you'll always want to protect them, and you'll feel empty when you're apart but complete when you're together. If Gaara's really in love with Hinata, then everything Temari had mentioned would be what he would feel. But no, he doesn't feel that way…maybe except for the last thing she said–you can't stop thinking of them. This was what happened to him. He couldn't stop thinking of Hinata because he misses her.

…so…was he really in love or not?

Gaara inwardly sighed. Perhaps this was one of the hundreds of reasons why falling in love wasn't part of his goals. Just thinking about it gives a person severe headache and too much confusion.

He was pulled out of his thoughts the moment Hinata looked up at him, smiling so sweetly. How long were they hugging each other? Gaara didn't know. But that didn't matter; he doesn't plan to release her anyway…if holding each other forever was possible. Unconsciously, his eyes landed on her lips. They looked so soft, so smooth, so…_tempting_. Gaara quickly averted his gaze back to Hinata's eyes and willed them to _stay right there_…

…before some ideas would appear on his mind.

Oh heavens! Since when did the both of them got addicted to hugging? Hinata's mind was swirling, but she managed to pull off a smile. It was a good thing nobody was visiting the Kazekage, or they'll both get caught being intimate. Kami, this was the Kazekage she's holding! But she missed him. She missed her friend. It's just normal to hug a friend, right? Kiba hugs her every day, so it must be. But she feels…different. Her stomach was churning, her heart beating erratically, and her face heating up. She had never felt this way except with…Naruto. NO! Gaara's a friend. _Friend!_ She missed him because he's a friend! She hugged him because he's a friend! She's feeling this way because he's a…a…

Hinata's smile faltered and her arms around Gaara loosened. She was letting go, much to Gaara's disappointment, and he released her as well. But before she looked away from his gaze, he was able to see the confusion in her eyes. She was struggling against something, and Gaara vaguely wondered if she was feeling the same way as him.

* * *

"Sakura-chan, do you know what's up with Hinata-chan lately?" Naruto asked his pink-haired teammate while they were eating at Ichiraku's for their early lunch.

"Huh? What do you mean, Naruto?" Sakura asked with confusion in her voice.

He emptied his second bowl of ramen with a slurp before he said, "She's been coming to my office for I don't know how many times now. She said she wanted to ask me something."

Sakura raised a pink brow. "And?"

He shrugged. "I was busy, so she really didn't have the chance to ask me" he answered. "That's why I'm asking you. In case you know something."

"Well, I don't know. I haven't really been able to talk to Hinata lately" she said. "But whatever she wanted to ask must be really important."

"Really? If it's important then she would've forced me to listen, you know" Naruto sighed.

"You idiot! You sound like you don't know her at all. Hinata isn't the type to force someone…especially _you_, moron." Sakura said as she pointed her chopsticks at Naruto, a frown was on her face.

"Right. Of course I knew that."

"You obviously don't, Naruto."

"Anyway," Naruto quickly said. "I'm glad Hinata-chan visits me," he paused, a bit flushed. "Earlier she went to my office. It's just…I left for a meeting. That's why I can't talk to her" he finished with a sad sigh.

Sakura felt compelled to comfort him. "I-it's okay, Naruto. You'll be able to talk to her soon enough. I'm sure as soon as this Naoshi business is finished, you could have time with Hinata" she said, hoping that would cheer him up.

Naruto fell silent for a while. Then, he beamed at the pink-haired kunoichi. "You're right! Thanks, Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed with a grin.

Sakura smiled back. "Let's go back and finish your papers" she said.

After paying their meals, they both left the small restaurant. As they walked, it was by pure coincidence that they spotted a large group in a distance.

It was obviously Hinata being surrounded…_again_.

Sakura watched Naruto rush to the group to find Hinata while she remained where she stood. It appeared as if he was an admirer himself, and he would've blended quite well with them if not for his white cape, a bit similar to his father's, that stood out among the dull-colored clothes the villagers and ninjas wore.

It didn't take long before the crowd of men noticed the Hokage behind them, trying to find his way to Hinata–if his shouting her name was any indication. And since he was their respected Hokage, they stepped aside while some left. After saying his thanks, Naruto stepped closer to Hinata who was staring at him with wide eyes.

"Naruto-kun? Do you need something?" Hinata asked in her soft voice.

"Yo, Hinata!" Naruto said, flashing a boyish grin. "I can _finally _talk to you!"

Hinata blinked at him. "Yes?"

"Sakura-chan and I were just talking about you back at Ichiraku's!" he exclaimed as he pointed back to his pink-haired teammate. Hinata waved at Sakura for a moment before turning her attention back to Naruto. The blond ninja continued, "I told her you wanted to ask me something but I was so busy to listen. So now while we're here, you can ask me."

It took a moment for his words to process in Hinata's head. Once it did, a blush appeared on her cheeks. "Um, Naruto-kun…" she started. "Actually, I'm on my way to Temari-san. She said she wanted to tell me something urgent. So…" she trailed off as she saw Naruto's face gradually turned sad. "I'm sorry…" was all she could mutter, feeling a bit guilty. She couldn't help it. Temari visited her early that morning at the Hyuuga compound and told her to meet up with her in the afternoon and not later. She even made Hinata promise.

"No. It's ok, Hinata-chan…" Naruto said rather miserably. "I understand"

"Sorry, Naruto. Maybe next time" Sakura said to the blond the moment she reached them. Then to Hinata, "He'll get over it, Hinata. He's just depressed as of the moment since he really wants to talk to you."

Hinata eyed the two curiously. _"They really don't seem to be a couple. I wonder…maybe things weren't really what I saw three years ago. Maybe, just maybe–" _Before she could finish her own thought, Hinata pulled herself together. She really shouldn't be hoping too much or she'll end up hurting again.

She didn't want that.

"Then, I'll take my leave" Hinata said with a bow. Sakura and Naruto gave her a curt nod and wave as she walked away in a fast pace.

* * *

Hinata wondered.

She wondered if it was alright with Gaara to be disturbed from his work even for just a little while. She just came from Temari's room and was now standing in front of Gaara's door while in deep thought.

She was _really_ uncertain if it would be to Gaara's liking. And now, she was having second thoughts about knocking. It was Temari's idea…more like request. All along Hinata thought it was very urgent.

Perhaps it wasn't for her. But for Temari, it was. Hinata, being an elder sister herself, understands very well the feeling of being concerned for your younger sibling. Maybe that was what made Temari mention urgency.

"Oh well…" Hinata sighed. "Temari-san needed my help so…here goes" she said to herself as she raised her hand to Gaara's door. She knocked three times and waited. Soon enough, the door opened and revealed Gaara holding a mug on one hand.

"Hinata…" he regarded her, his eyes searching for something in her hands.

Hinata giggled. "I'm not here to deliver anything, Gaara" she said with a smile.

Gaara's jade eyes fixed with her pale ones. If he had visible eyebrows, he would've already raised one in question.

Hinata took the cue and flashed him her sweet smile. Then she said, "Gaara, let's go on a date!"

* * *

**A/N: I want all of you to know that starting for this chapter until the following chapters, I won't be updating UNTIL there would be at least 10 reviews. So please review if you wish for updates...Man, I sound so...evil O.o**

**So, as I've already told you, suggestions and ideas are welcomed and greatly appreciated. Thank you!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: You guys…wow…just, **_**wow**_**…my sister was right. Now I owe her 5 bucks…kidding :) And, hell yeah, it's bribery! hehe! Evil much? Sorry, I just didn't think you guys would really review **_**this **_**much. I especially enjoyed the review of ****rainbowpanther9****. The best review**—**ever! XD Anyways, thank you everyone! Now I know you like my story and I'm happy with that. **_**Really**_** happy! So, here, you got your update… **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 14**

"Hinata…"

"Yes, Gaara?"

"This thing you called 'date'…" Gaara's jade eyes scanned the several types of dishes set in front of him.

"Yes?" the soft voice of Hinata could barely be heard through the noise going on around the place.

"Did you, perhaps, mean…" he raised a hand and gestured in front of him. "…lunch?"

Hinata's gaze landed on the table in front of them filled with variety of dishes. She and Gaara were currently sitting inside a restaurant with lunch served at their table. Her cheeks turned red in shame as she remembered what she had said to Gaara earlier.

"_Gaara, let's go on a date!"She had told him with a smile on her face._

Well, she did say "date". But she hadn't really meant it. That was just because…

"I'm sorry, Gaara" she muttered, the blush on her face deepened. "It's not really a 'date'. Temari-san asked me earlier to take you to lunch since, according to her, you would skip your meal only to continue with your work. She said she wanted to bring lunch to your room but she has important things to attend to. And so, she asked me instead" she explained with her eyes downcast. She didn't want to see the look of anger in Gaara's face—if he would ever show it.

There was not a word from him, so Hinata became nervous. Maybe he's very angry he couldn't say anything and just glare at her. But she couldn't feel him glaring…just staring. Slowly, she looked up to see Gaara's reaction. He didn't look angry. His face still didn't show any emotions. Then, Hinata's eyes met his. And to her surprise, his glint in his eyes appeared…_pleased_?

She immediately felt compelled to explain further. So she looked away and said, with her face getting redder, "U-um…I–uh…Temari-san believed that if I told you I would take you to lunch, you wouldn't come. So she instructed me to tell you that it would be a date so you would accept. And," she glanced back at him. "It seems she was right" she finished with a slight frown. Hinata couldn't fathom why there would be a need to trick Gaara. Why not just tell him the truth and convince him? That's what she had always been doing…considering that she used to be a _very_ bad liar. But now, she leveled up! She became a bad liar—without the "very", there's a difference, right?

Gaara just took his time watching her. He was pretty amused by the manner her cheeks turn different shades of red. Seriously…as soon as Hinata invited him on this so-called "date" —Temari explained to him once what date was—Gaara felt like jumping for joy…very uncharacteristic of him, actually. And as always, he didn't know why. But all he knew was, when it comes to Hinata, everything seemed pleasant. She was a friend, but not a friend.

Well, how to explain this…

She says he's a friend, so he treats her as a friend. But what he feels for her was more than a friend. He can't explain it, but he could feel it. Hinata was a friend, but not a friend. That was how he put it.

And now, even though Temari was right that he would prefer skipping meals and working, ha had to admit he was quite pleased with his sister. He knew what she was trying to do. He was as perceptive as her after all. Ever since he asked her his question about missing Hinata, he noticed she's been acting devious. So he figured she was playing cupid and trying to get him and Hinata together. Gaara inwardly smirked. Foolish sister…he wasn't in love. He denied that option for several thousands of times already with a proof that he doesn't feel any of the "signs of being in love" Temari mentioned to him. He just missed Hinata, is all—and he had been done with that already. She was now in front of him, eating lunch. Not to mention, uncomfortable under his intense staring. He realized how cute she was when she's flustered.

Gaara allowed his lips to form a small smile. Now that he has thought about it, he dared to show no one his smiles except Hinata. She was different…different because they were both quite the same. In the past, when they first talked, she really looked like an emotionless doll. And Gaara had agreed with Temari at that. But lately, as he got to spend more time with her, she started to show him a little of her emotions. Starting with her genuine smile, then her blush, her laugh, her giggles, her warm smile, her sweet smile—hey, there's a difference—and then her adorable stutters, though when overused it would surely be annoying. Maybe Hinata hadn't realized this yet, but he sure did. And in return for that, he showed her his own emotions. Not to mention, she was the first he began to open up to.

"Gaara?" Hinata's soft voice, that could lull a person to sleep, called.

Broken out of his thoughts, Gaara met Hinata's gaze, waiting for her to say what she wanted to say.

"Is the food not to your liking?" she asked in a worried tone.

He could've scoffed at her question. Very typical of Hinata. She asks him like he was a guest, a stranger. Gaara hadn't minded it in the past. But now that they've been more than acquaintances, he didn't like it one bit. Well, he couldn't blame her. She was an heiress to an influential clan. Thus, it was by normal standards and of importance a lady would be taught proper mannerisms. That includes their treatment towards guests. Besides, maybe Hinata was only speaking that way out of habit.

"No, it's fine" Gaara responded.

Despite his answer, Hinata's worried expression was still there. "It's unsatisfactory, then?"

Didn't he say 'it's fine'? Perhaps she misunderstood. "What makes you think that?" he asked her instead.

Hinata bit her lip before answering, "You haven't touched your food." Her eyes fell on the dishes on the table.

Gaara's eyes followed as well before he muttered a barely audible "Oh." He just realized she was right. But he can't stop himself from thinking that he had been full just watching Hinata eat. Instead of filling his head more of shameful thoughts, Gaara grabbed his chopsticks and began eating. The food was good but he had tasted better…or he wasn't just that hungry.

For a while, Hinata watched Gaara eat before digging in herself. For a moment there she thought he disliked her company so he preferred not to eat with her. Most of the times, she had no idea what's going on inside Gaara's head. He was very inscrutable that it's hard to talk to him. Maybe that's the reason why many people don't like him and just avoid him. For Hinata, it was quite the opposite, she admits. His enigmatic character was, by far, the one thing that makes her want to talk to him more. She feels this strong urge to get to know him, to _understand_ him. And so far, the thing she discovered about Gaara was that he was comforting. The night she shouted at him, she hadn't expected him to hug her and let her cry on him. He didn't even have to say anything to soothe her. He just let her cry her heart out. And Hinata was grateful for that. After that night, even if they hadn't met for three days afterwards, it felt like they have been closer.

The two of them finished their meal in silence. Shortly afterwards, they left the restaurant and walked to the direction of the inn Gaara was staying.

"Gaara, let me help you with your work" Hinata offered with a smile.

Gaara stopped walking and turned to look at her. He gave her a strange look. "That's it?" he muttered.

"Huh?" Hinata stared at him in bewilderment.

Gaara averted his eyes from her to look at the ground, indulged in his thoughts for a second. Then he said, "Temari explained to me once what a 'date' was. She said it's about taking a walk in the park, or just taking a stroll somewhere we like, eating meals together—which we had done already, and she even said that mainly it's about enjoying your time." He tried to explain shortly the thousand words Temari had told him about a date. She even used unnecessary words such as "lovingly", "precious", "affection", and even what she called "romantic". But Gaara couldn't remember how she used those words anymore, and he was sure he didn't _want_ to remember. Talk about having to sit and listen to her blabber for hours and hours that day. Gaara could've sworn his ears were bleeding when Temari had finished. What really happened at that time was he was asked by a woman, years older than him, to go on a date with him. Of course he flatly refused, he didn't want to have anything to do with her nor does he care. But his curiosity about what she said made him ask the all-knowing-sister of his—obviously Temari—and the unforeseen nightmare began.

Hinata gaped at him. Soon, a blush crept up her face as realization of what he meant dawned on her. "Um…Gaara…h-haven't I already mentioned that it wasn't really a date?" was what she said. And she was pretty sure she had told him earlier.

But what Hinata just said only fell on deaf ears. In short, Gaara wasn't listening…at all. And his next words proved that. "Hinata, where do you want to go?" he asked her in his usual monotone as he looked at her. This date thing was new to him. But he found himself liking it, though it didn't show in his face.

Hinata opened her mouth only to close it again. She was about to point out—_once more_—to Gaara that the "date" wasn't really a date. But when she found the gleam of excitement and interest in his green eyes, she hesitated. Then she decided that it wouldn't hurt if she'll just go along with him. And so, she thought for a moment before suggesting, "How about we take a stroll around the village?"

Gaara thought about it for a second before nodding his head in agreement. As he turned to start walking, he immediately noticed several guys making their way over to Hinata. His eyes quickly darted to the heiress who noticed as well but chose to ignore it. Gaara's good mood vanished and he had to suppress his urge to growl at them. Earlier when he and Hinata were on their way to the restaurant, the same thing happened. He let Hinata take care of the situation that time. However, he wasn't all too certain he would allow her now—if the slight twitching of his hands that were currently crossed over his chest were any indication of that. Thank heavens, he had such good control or he would've long crushed them with his sand. Where the hell are the bug sprays when you needed them the most? Those idiots are infesting quickly by the hour! Every—how did Temari call them again?—"jackasses" and fools in Konoha has been sniffing after her this whole time.

One of the guys that reached her side could be described as dark and handsome. _"When it is dark, he's handsome"_ he could hear Temari say—if ever she was there. And there's another guy who _barely_ reached Hinata's shoulders. Gaara vaguely wondered since he's so short, if ever it rains he'd be the last know. Then, there's this—hell…Is that a _horse_? Gaara blinked.

He stands corrected. That was still a human. He's just smiling with his horse-like teeth showing. Heck, any robber would be happy enough to lend him their mask just so he could cover that up. He mentally grimaced. _These _types of guys hang around Hinata all the time? Her suffering rivals that of a jinchuuriki's childhood!

"Hinata…" he muttered, his voice held no emotion. He didn't know what to say. He just blurted out her name accidentally to his horror. But he cleared his throat to hide it just in time. Why the hell is he feeling like killing bugs right now…and those bugs happen to be those drooling dogs? Now he's sounding as if he hates certain people around Hinata as well! It must be the noise of the crowd made by those mutts with all their yip-yapping…such nuisance. Yes, that's it. That's got to be it. He found them a nuisance.

Gaara was itching to swat them _all_ away. But if he did that, they would fear him more. He didn't want that to happen. And that's just what he kept replaying in his mind. It sure worked and kept him from summoning his sand—but that was until someone attempted to _kiss_ Hinata.

Of course, being used to things like that, Hinata dodged expertly without offending the man.

Of course, _not_ being used to things like _that_, Gaara just lost all reasoning. His amazing self-control didn't feel so amazing anymore. In other words, his mind went blank. His eyes landed on Hinata once again and a voice in his head screamed, _"Mine!"_

Without warning, the whole crowd surrounding the almost-drowning heiress was lifted up in the sky. Thick strands of sand that slithered around their bodies held them tight. It looked like a sand tree bearing humans as its fruits. Except, the fruits were struggling against the branches while screaming and asking for help.

Hinata gasped in horror and her eyes quickly darted to Gaara who held up one hand to control his sand effortlessly. His face _obviously_ contorted with anger and he was glaring daggers at the men he caught. Their reactions were all the same—silence accompanied by fear.

Hinata was rendered speechless. But Gaara certainly wasn't. _Oh_, he had something to tell them, alright. "Touch her in my presence again and it'll be _sand_wich for you" he snarled.

He didn't shout. But his voice sounded a hundred times more venomous than if he had. All heads nodded vigorously indicating that they have understood what he had said. So, he released them. Before their feet even landed on the ground, Gaara grasped Hinata's wrist—more like grip—and pulled her out of there.

They were now in the middle of another busy afternoon street when Hinata winced in pain, unable to endure it any longer. "Too tight…" she muttered. "Gaara, you're hurting me" she said to him. Gaara released her from his death grip as he abruptly stopped his brisk walking, making Hinata bump on his back. She staggered back but quickly managed to balance herself once again. His shoulders were stiff, she noted. And Hinata could tell he wasn't anywhere near calm. She had thought her heart would stop as she saw his face earlier. She wondered what made him _that_ angry.

And then it hit her.

Hinata barely stifled a gasp. She remembered once when she and Gaara went to eat dango, he appeared pretty bothered with the crowd of men that were just standing behind them. He had wanted them to leave that time too. Perhaps that was the reason why he was mad. How could she have forgotten that? She should've made them leave before they could have the chance to approach her. It was her fault again…

"I a—"

"Don't think of apologizing, Hinata" Gaara quickly interrupted. With his back still facing her, Hinata's eyes wandered on his wide frame. He continued, "I should be the one asking for forgiveness for my behavior earlier." Even his voice sounded stiff.

"Gaara, it's okay" Hinata tried to reassure him. "No one got hurt, right?" She almost sighed in relief as she saw his shoulders relax and she heard him exhale. Was he holding his breath until now? Kami, was he really very mad? But then, what Gaara had said to those guys earlier replayed in her mind.

"_Touch her in my presence again and it'll be sandwich for you" he had said to them._

She couldn't help but smile. Soon enough, she found herself giggling. Out of curiosity, Gaara looked at her quivering small frame over his shoulder. What on earth was so funny?

Seeming as she had read his mind, Hinata said, sobering a little, "S-sorry, Gaara. I c-couldn't help it" There was a grin on her face. Oh how relieved can she get? Gaara wasn't angry! Not at all! "Gaara?" she called his name oh-so-sweetly.

He stared hard on her, a little annoyed at her current expression. What does she find so amusing while he was overflowing with confusion. It was surprising enough that he hadn't regretted his action earlier. In all honesty, he felt so much relieved that he got out whatever it was in his chest. It was just that he became too tensed afterwards for he really hadn't expected his control to slip. Despite not feeling any remorse, he ended up apologizing for his actions when Hinata started to apologize herself.

Although she only got a hard look from him, Hinata didn't mind. "Gaara, what you had said earlier," she paused. Gaara's gaze followed hers as she walked and stopped just in front of him. "Why did you say that?" she finished.

Gaara could've sworn those pale eyes of hers glistened with mischief. "Because they were a nuisance" he answered simply, sounding nonchalant. And of course he meant it. Of course that was his reason. What else?

…what on heaven's name had he just said that made her grin widen?

"Is that all, Gaara?" Hinata asked as she leaned forward a bit, her eyes remained on his.

Now he was irked. Hinata's really trying his patience, which what he was greatly lacking as of the moment. "What do you want me to say?" he almost growled out.

The next words that came from Hinata's mouth caught Gaara off guard.

"Gaara…" she chuckled, the mischievous glint in her eyes now more evident. "Were you…_jealous_?" Whenever Hinata was surrounded and Kiba was present, he would always growl at the guys telling them to back off or he won't go easy on them. Hana, Kiba's older sister, pointed out to her that it was just "Kiba being jealous". Hinata knew her teammate was possessive. Aside from being an Inuzuka, he was just…Kiba. So, she presumed maybe Gaara was the same.

It took a second before the words sank in. And when it had, "jealous" just became the word of the day in Gaara's vocabulary.

Was he jea—ha! Psh! Him? Jealous? Sabaku no Gaara…_jealous_? Hn! You've got to be kidding! Of all the accusations Hinata could've made! Psh…jealous…Ridiculous! That's what it was! There was no way that would ever—repeat—_ever_ gonna happen! Haha…he could've have died laughing at that.

Really…

Gaara stared wide-eyed at the heiress who was still waiting for his response.

…was he jealous?

Hmph! He could scoff at it as many times as he want! "I wasn't jealous, Hinata" he finally answered.

But Hinata's face told him she wasn't buying that. But her words contradicted that. "Okay" was all she said. She didn't seem to be disappointed. Quite the opposite, she was very pleased that Gaara didn't like it one bit. It was clear she didn't believe what he said but it was also obvious that she didn't want to debate about it.

Gaara cleared his throat. "Well, shall we continue what we had planned on doing before the…happenings?" he suggested.

Hinata seemed to agree with that for her face lit up and she nodded her head. They started walking again when Gaara stopped her with a hand grasping lightly her forearm. Hinata's eyes darted from his hand on her arm to his eyes. She looked at him in puzzlement.

"We should heal your wrist first" he said to her. "Didn't I grip it too tight?"

Hinata's eyes widened at him but relaxed almost immediately. She smiled up at him. "How kind of you, Gaara. I have not thought you would remember something so trivial" she said.

There she was again. Giving him a compliment he didn't deserve, or so he thought. "There's nothing trivial about it, Hinata. Show me your wrist" he demanded.

Reluctantly, she gave him her bruised wrist. But it was no longer bruised. "I had already healed it, Gaara" she explained when she felt his confusion. "I did it in front of you. Haven't you noticed?"

Apparently not. He was too engrossed in his thoughts. "Let's go" he said, changing the subject quite easily. Hinata nodded and they walked along the busy street, side-by-side.

They walked in silence. It wasn't awkward at all. Instead, it was very comfortable.

"Hey, look!" Daisuke called out to the others with a wave of his hand. Arima, Shiro and Kuro turned their heads at the same time to the direction their friend was looking. Gasps of surprise followed shortly, coming from both Arima and Shiro.

"Is that…" Shiro trailed off, her grey eyes glued to the couple in a distance.

"You bet it is!" Daisuke exclaimed. "That's—"

"Kazekage-sama and Hinata-sama" Kuro finished. He was as shocked as his younger twin.

"What are they doing?" Arima asked in her meek voice. She was hurt by the sight—if the shaking of her voice and lips were any indication.

"What else can you conclude from that?" Daisuke stated more than questioned. "They're obviously dating! I knew it! Those two are in a relation—"

"Quiet down, Daisuke!" Shiro glared at him. "Be sensitive of your surroundings for once. Can't you see Arima-chan's crushed?!"

Daisuke sealed his mouth shut after mumbling a "Sorry."

Arima looked on to the scene happening in front of them. Before she could stop herself, she commented, "Kazekage-sama acts entirely different whenever he's with Hinata-san." She clutched a hand on her clothed chest. "He doesn't even show us that smile of his…"

Gaara was having fun, he admits. This "date" wasn't so bad after all. No, it was, so far, enjoyable. Why, just watching Hinata pointing and introducing things to him from shops and stores was amusing itself. And they had just begun on their strolling. He was enjoying so much that he hadn't noticed the smile that formed on his lips.

Hinata turned to look at him. Their eyes met and both just smiled. A bystander would easily mistake them for lovers—with no touching of any sort. Of course, they weren't holding hands. But they stood too close to each other anyway. All the stares they both got they ignored. They simply enjoyed.

Hinata's eyes landed on a shop just a few feet away from them making her gasp. Gaara immediately stood in alert. His eyes followed the direction of Hinata's gaze only to find lots and lots of…

"Pandas!" Hinata exclaimed in excitement. She rushed to the transparent window revealing the black-and-white stuffed toys inside the shop. Gaara took his time catching up with the beaming heiress. He stopped and raised his head the look up at the name of the store. "Puking Rainbows…?" he muttered. What a lame name…

"Gaara, can we come inside?" Hinata pleaded.

Oh the look on her face…Gaara was certain she was doing that on purpose. Looking so cute…cuter than those damned pandas.

He just nodded in response. Well, at least Hinata was having fun...with him. In a flash, Hinata pulled him inside the store called "Puking Rainbows". Pfft! Who would be so dumb as to open a store with that name? But once Gaara had stepped inside, he admits the store was no joke. It was packed with not just pandas—goodness, no—but also different types of stuffed animals. Everything seemed colorful and…rainbow-_ish._ Perhaps, that's why that's the store name. No way in hell was he ever mentioning that name again.

But wait! At the corner of his eye, he spotted something _way_ off among the collections of stuffed toys in the store. He found…stuffed ramen bowl! But Gaara shrugged it off. He figured Naruto had something to do with the making of stuffed ramen bowl—of all things. But then again, Naruto was also famous for being the number one most unpredictable ninja. This just proves that. After he finished quickly looking around, he turned to Hinata only to find a panda bear in her arms. She was cuddling and nuzzling against its big fat black-and-white head.

Hinata looked back at Gaara and smiled sweetly. "Look, Gaara! This one's so cute!" she said to him as she twirled around.

Gaara gave her a smile. It was like the prim and proper Hyuuga heiress turned back into a child. So she likes these things, huh? How cute.

"Here, Gaara! Hug it!" she gently shoved him the panda similar to what she was holding. "They're softer than they looked!"

Hinata was really excited about this. Gaara held the panda at arm's length to observe the fat thing. Yeah, sure it was considered cute. But he believed his teddy bear, certainly not a panda, was ten times better than this one.

Hinata eyed him curiously. "Gaara?" she softly called. "Don't you like it?"

Gaara shook his head. "I just remembered something."

She approached and stood in front of him, the stuffed toy wrapped securely over her chest. "Would you like to tell me?" she half-offered with a warm smile on her face.

Gaara regarded her for a while. It's not a secret anyway and so he said, "I owned a bear once. It was very important to me. I treated it as my friend since...I used to have none." He looked down at the toy in his hands. "But my father—the fourth Kazekage—took it away from me. He said I was already too old for stuffed toys. And so, he had the bear burned to nothing."

"That's horrible…" Hinata mumbled. "What did you do after that?"

Gaara fixed his eyes with hers. "I…cried," he slightly frowned, a bit uncomfortable telling his short moment of weakness. "For a toy. _My_ toy…and my only friend."

"Oh Gaara…" Hinata muttered sadly. It was just a toy, yes. But for a child loathed by everyone, it was everything. Hinata let the panda in her arms drop only to wrap her arms around the Kazekage. She, then, gently leaned in his chest and listened to the steady beating of his heart. The panda in Gaara's hands squeezed between them.

Gaara softly chuckled as he dropped his panda and hugged her back, pulling her close to him. "What's wrong, Hinata?" he gently asked. "You couldn't possibly be grieving for something lifeless, are you?"

Hinata shook her head and looked up at him. "I'm not grieving for your teddy bear. I'm grieving for the Gaara in the past together with the emotions he felt when he lost something precious" she softly said.

Gaara eyes widened. But his features relaxed and softened almost immediately. "Thank you…I guess" he muttered while looking away.

Hinata didn't miss the fair blush that stained his cheeks, making her giggle. She pulled away from his embrace and picked up the two pandas they left on the floor. "I think it's best that we end the 'date' here. I believe you still have matters to attend to" she said as she returned the pandas on their racks.

Gaara nodded in agreement. They both left the shop named you-know-what and stood outside staring back at each other.

"You wouldn't let me help you with your work, would you?" Hinata asked.

Gaara smirked but didn't say anything. It was his responsibility. Therefore, he'll deal with it himself.

She sighed. "Okay, then. I guess this is where we go back to our businesses" she said with a smile. "Good luck with your work, Gaara. And, I really had fun."

"I as well, Hinata" Gaara replied with a curt nod and a small smile. "I'll now take my leave." With that, Gaara dashed towards the direction of the inn while Hinata waved at him as he left.

* * *

Shikamaru glanced back, and then glanced away, only to glance back again, and away. He had been doing this for a while now, glancing for the umpteenth time.

"Spit it out" demanded Temari beside him.

They were sitting inside a tea house having a snack. Temari had dragged Shikamaru away from his teammates, Ino and Chouji, while on their way to eat BBQ—again—only to bring him here, a teahouse where you could only have dango and sweets with tea. But Shikamaru wasn't complaining at all. Not at all! Really!

"How troublesome…" he muttered under his breath. "Spit out what?"

"You know what, lazy genius" Temari replied.

"Your face looks creepy" was all he said. Shikamaru was expecting a loud thud of the table being hit and a yell to come. That was why it surprised him that he heard none.

"Say that again and you'll get a taste of my fan, Shikamaru-_kun_" Temari simply said, deliberately adding an honorific.

But Shikamaru wasn't bothered by it. He believes it's too troublesome to bother. Instead, he yawned. A small tear formed at the corner of his eyes and he didn't bother wiping it either. "Woman, you told me to 'spit it out'. And I was telling you, your face really looks creepy. You've been smiling from ear-to-ear for how many hours now" he said.

Temari's grin widened—as if it wasn't wide enough. "Oh, I'm just in a pretty good mood lately" she stated.

"What happened? Did someone die?" Shikamaru yawned.

"You may attempt to make me angry, pineapple-head, but let me tell you now it won't work. I'm just too pleased to snap back at you" Temari said confidently.

Shikamaru looked at the blonde woman across from him with half-lidded eyes. "Which was why you dragged me with you. So you have someone to gloat over what you did" he concluded.

Temari's face turned smug. "As expected of you. Well, since you asked what happened I'll tell you" she said haughtily. But her smugness didn't last long as an excited look replaced it. "My plan is working" she grinned.

"What plan?" he yawned.

Her face lit up and her eyes twinkled. "Get-Gaara-and-Hinata-together plan!" she exclaimed. She didn't wait for the Nara as she continued eagerly, "Obviously the plan mainly involves these two people, Gaara and Hinata. Now, in order to get them to like each other, I devised a plan to make them _talk _to each other. You see, the first step in a relationship is communication. It is the most important factor that could…" Temari went on and explained _almost _everything to Shikamaru who had no choice but to listen to the blonde woman blabber. Temari left out the part about the incident three years ago and, of course, Hinata's incapability to show her emotions. She didn't want to undergo another nightmare for being guilty.

As soon as she finished, Shikamaru let all the words sink in despite it being too troublesome. "No wonder Hinata seemed a bit changed lately" he stated.

"Right?" Temari nodded her head, the smug look still on her face. "That's my handiwork you saw." If Temari's nose were like Pinocchio's, it would've already reached a thousand miles away—only, not because she's lying but because of her dangerously growing ego.

Shikamaru ignored it. Instead, he paid more attention to rubbing the back of his neck as if he had just done doing man labor. He sighed then muttered sleepily, "You know very well that you're taking advantage of Hinata's kindness, right?"

A pang of guilt hammered on Temari's chest making her flinch at his words. "O-of course I knew that!" Then she turned defensive. "Also, I'm not the one gaining benefit from it. They both are. And I'll let you know that they'll soon thank me for what I did for them. I did it…just for them!"

"But the probability I see here is either _you_ want to gain some attention, be thanked and praised by them, or you extremely want Hinata as a little sister. And it is highly probable that you won't stop this game of yours _until _you see them married with each other. Maybe even then you would still continue" he said dryly.

Temari pouted. "Fine, I admit! I also have a gain in this matter, if my plan would really work—which it will, of course. I want Hinata, who I treat as a sister, close to me. And the only way to do that is to let my brother have her" she said. "But I really meant everything I said about those two. I really wish for my brother to be happy. It's not just Hinata. I know you noticed as well that Gaara's a little, if not very, high-spirited lately. Well, it may not be obvious in his face since he doesn't really show it. But I can easily tell the difference. His normal stare that used to look like a death glare now softened. His face looked calm and cool. His monotonous voice was…still monotonous. But, you can now hear gentleness in his voice. His cold demeanor vanished and what remained was mystery and tranquility" Temari pointed out. "Just being of help to my brothers is enough happiness for me" she sincerely said with a contented smile on her face.

Temari's eyes focused on the cup she was holding that contained the tea. So, she missed the genuine smile Shikamaru flashed her way.

* * *

"Here you go, Shiro-chan" Kumiko said with a smile as she gently shoved a basket to Shiro. She, together with Kuro, Daisuke and Arima, just finished spying on Hinata and Gaara when Kumiko found them. Hinata was still standing in front of the toy store where Gaara had left her just a few seconds ago. "It's your turn to pick up some herbs. Oh, and make sure you pick a lot. The medicines we made turned out to be very useful at the medical center. Hokage-sama was very pleased and he had asked us to make some more" Kumiko said in her soft voice.

"Sure! You got it" Shiro said with a nod.

"Ask a Leaf ninja to accompany you, okay?" Kumiko reminded before she left the four teenagers.

"Hah! Great timing, I could ask Hinata-sama!" Shiro exclaimed as she started her way to the heiress who was already turning to leave.

"Ah, Shiro! I'll come too" Kuro said, following his younger twin.

"Come back soon!" Daisuke called out to the twins as they ran towards Hinata.

"Hinata-sama!" Shiro shouted out, waving a hand up in order to be seen. "Hinata-sama!"

As soon as she heard her name being called, Hinata stopped walking and turned to see who it was. "Shiro-san, Kuro-san" she softly said, recognizing the Naoshi twins.

"Hinata-sama," Shiro started the moment they reached the heiress. "We're on our way to pick herbs in the forest outside the village. I was told to have a shinobi accompany me. So, may I ask you a favor to please come with us?"

Hinata smiled and said, "Sure, Shiro-san. Just let me get my kunai pouch and we can go." She was about to dash out from there but stopped short. She asked instead, "Would you like to come with me? Once we get to my house, we can leave from there."

Shiro nodded her head and smiled. The three of them walked their way towards the Hyuuga compound.

Once they arrived at the entrance, Hinata opened the gate and stepped inside. She told the twins, who were currently gaping at the "house" that turned out to be some mansion, to enter.

"Hinata-sama" said a voice that belonged to Neji as soon as the heiress arrived.

"Neji nii-san, you have a mission?" Hinata asked, seeing a bag slung over one of his shoulder.

"Yes" he answered. By that time, Shiro and Kuro stepped inside as well. Neji eyed them warily.

Hinata immediately explained, "I'm to accompany them to the forest. I just came here to get my things."

Neji seemed to be satisfied with that since he nodded his head. "Hinata-sama, I'll take my leave now. Be careful when you get to the forest. I heard Inuzuka Kiba got ambushed by those after the Naoshis when he went to escort one of them" he said.

Hinata smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Neji nii-san. I will be careful."

With that, Neji left. Hinata wasted no more time in getting her kunai pouch and the three of them left for the forest.

* * *

Evening came rather quickly that day. The moon wasn't anywhere to be seen. But the stars, sprinkled all over the night sky, twinkled and adorned the moonless night.

Gaara was sitting behind his desk engrossed in his work. Bundles of scrolls and stacks of papers that seemed to only get higher and higher by the minute were laid almost everywhere, on and around his table. The lack of space didn't stop Gaara from expertly reading one scroll to the next and writing his reply to each one of it.

Then when he read one certain scroll, he smiled. His brother Kankuro filled the whole page of the scroll whining about how he didn't want to be Kazekage anymore. He wrote that even Baki stayed up with him just finishing barely half of what needs to be done. The puppeteer complained how he doesn't have time anymore redoing his "awesome" face paint and he blamed it on his Kazekage duties.

Really, it was the first time Kankuro begged Gaara to come back. And Kankuro, or Temari…or even Gaara weren't the types to _easily_ beg—they blamed it on their blood. The puppeteer wrote that if Gaara would come back, he would carve him a puppet. It was then that Gaara couldn't stop himself from grimacing. Not that he appreciated the thought but he didn't like Kankuro's designs for his puppets. They're way too…Kankuro-_ish_.

As soon as he finished reading the message, Gaara rolled the scroll and placed it…uh…somewhere on his impossible-to-put-anything-more-since-it's-too-ful l table. It was at that time that the door to his room burst open to reveal a wide-eyed Temari. Gaara immediately noticed something was wrong. His blonde sister looked like she's about to hyperventilate or panic from something she couldn't handle well.

He stood up from his seat. Eyeing her cautiously, he asked, "What's wrong?"

Temari tried her best to compose herself only to fail miserably. Her heart was hammering on her chest, her face and hands sweaty, and her mind swirling. Before her anxiousness completely clouded her thoughts, she managed to finally shout, "Gaara…Hinata's been kidnapped!"

* * *

**A/N: The joke about the "dark and handsome" thing, I just got from the internet. I didn't make that up. The Naoshi characters made their appearance once again…hoorah, anyone? Come on, it's a sign that we're one step near the end of it. Oh and, the store name...pretty cool, huh? Hehe! "Puking Rainbows"**** the best!**

'**At-least-10-reviews-equals-update' no jutsu, everyone! And as always, suggestions and ideas are greatly appreciated. :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Special thanks to:** **maxridelover****, ****Ayumy Usagi****, ****benihanas****, ****Aoi Kitsune12****, ****AaviyanTage****, ****McKazekage****, ****Megane-usa-chan****,****PsychoticSky**** and ****921350****. **As always, I love you guys!

**Warning: I'm not really sure if there's a need for this since this story is rated T for a reason. Oh well, just a little warning on Naruto's language. That's all.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 15**

"Gaara…Hinata's been kidnapped!"

Not a second later, Gaara was gone from his room. Temari remained on her spot leaning on the doorframe, trying to process what had just happened. She had never seen Gaara move so fast before. Not in her entire life.

In spite of all the anxiety she felt at the moment, her lips curled into a smug smile. "The fool's finally fallen in love…"

* * *

Papers and scrolls scattered all over the floor, an enraged voice echoed in the room, nervous but defiant voices attempted to calm the angered person…or just shut him up.

It was the scene that greeted Gaara as soon as he arrived at the Hokage's office, his hand grasping the door knob of the wide open door. Apparently, knocking on the wooden door didn't cross his mind when he rushed to the place upon hearing the news. But his arrival remained unnoticed as the rampaging Naruto continued to violently interrogate the two Konoha councilors—who were surprisingly still alive and kicking.

The blond Hokage had the two elders half-lying on the floor while he grab them by their collars, very tightly that his knuckles turned white. His face was twisted with fury. His eyebrows were drawn together into a frown, his teeth visibly gritted together, and his sapphire eyes that used to sparkle with cheerfulness were now dangerously dark. His whole demeanor changed drastically that one would not believe he was the same Naruto they knew.

"You may be the Hokage now, Uzumaki Naruto, but you don't have the right to question us like that" said the male elder, Mitokado Homura. Gaara mentally gave the old man credit for the pathetic defiance that never seemed to run out even in his current position.

Then the old woman, Utatane Koharu, began to speak up, "He's right. We—"

"DON'T GIVE ME THAT BULLSHIT!" Naruto roared, cutting off whatever Koharu was about to say. "If it weren't for you, Hinata wouldn't have been kidnapped! You were the ones who wanted to delay the plan! And now, it has led to this! Another two Naoshi and Hinata have fallen into their hands! Because of you!"

"You know very well the reason we wanted postponement. We've gone through this in the meeting already. Your plan isn't guaranteed to work. For this reason, we needed more time to think of foolproof strategies" Homura explained, trying hard enough to sound calm. But Gaara could hear the slight shaking of his voice and, for some reason, felt smug about it. He never took a liking to village council, including in Suna. That was why witnessing something like this was simply satisfying.

"You don't seem to have any plans in stopping Naruto" a voice said beside Gaara.

"That's obviously because I don't want to" Gaara replied dryly. His green eyes darted to the side, eyeing the person crossing his arms and leaning leisurely on the wall of the office. "What are you doing here, Inuzuka Kiba?"

Kiba uncrossed his arms only to shove his hands to his pant pockets. "I assume your sister told you what happened, huh? She was here earlier checking if there were any recent reports from Suna when I announced Hinata's been missing."

Gaara's eyes slightly narrowed as he looked at the Inuzuka. His large white dog was beside him looking as if it was listening to their conversation as well. Naruto was still shouting but that did not disrupt their discussion. "How did you know she was kidnapped?" he asked in a low voice.

"Why do you care? What is she to you anyway?" Kiba frowned.

"Just answer the damned question" Gaara gritted out. He doesn't have time for this. Hinata was out there in the filthy hands of the bandits. He wanted answers…_now_.

Kiba scoffed. "Or what?"

Gaara didn't even try resisting. He swiftly wrapped Kiba and Akamaru with his sand and held them up in the air.

Kiba got the message and quickly said, "Fine! I'll tell you!" His voice sounded bitter from being caught easily. "A Hyuuga branch member came to my house asking me of Hinata's whereabouts. Hinata isn't the type to wander about so late at night. And since I haven't seen her for the whole day today, I went here thinking that Naruto might know something. Upon arriving, I found the Naoshi grandpa and Kumiko-san talking to Naruto. Kumiko-san explained to me that the twins hadn't come back to their rooms. She mentioned about sending one of them to go pick herbs outside the village. It was then that I asked Naruto if he knew where Hinata was. As it turned out, he didn't. So, I requested that I search for her outside the village walls, supposing that she's with a Naoshi to pick herbs as I had done. It didn't take long before I caught her scent and found nothing but her chakra engulfed handkerchief on the ground. Not just that, there was the familiar scent, although faint, of one of the bandits I encountered last time. And there wasn't only three, but a lot of scent mixed on the ground. So, Akamaru and I assumed Hinata and the two other Naoshi were ambushed and kidnapped by several bandits. And so far, that's the only reason reasonable enough to make us believe on why and how Hinata was caught."

"What makes you think that?" Gaara asked.

Kiba glared down at him. "You wouldn't think Hinata's strong enough to protect two people, now would you?" he spat out. "Well, think again. Hinata isn't a jounin for nothing. She's strong enough to almost be on par with her cousin. And who knows? Maybe she's even surpassed him by now. Hinata's gotten very strong that she's capable of defeating at least thirty people effortlessly."

It hadn't occurred to Gaara before. Hinata was that good? When he had met her in the chunin exams when they were still kids, he had always thought of her as something less than that, just small and weak. Now he feels slightly—just _slightly_—horrible for underestimating her. Slowly, he released Kiba and Akamaru and focused his attention to the still furious Naruto before them.

"I want a search party this instant!" the blond demanded.

"I'm afraid we cannot do that" Koharu quickly disagreed.

"The Inuzuka confirmed that the incident happened several hours ago. It is highly probable that the Hyuuga and the two Naoshi are now dead. Our efforts in finding them would be rendered useless _and_ a waste of time" Homura explained.

Upon hearing this, Kiba and Akamaru audibly growled, Gaara snarled with his sand dangerously lingering around him and Naruto released his hold on their collars—only to replace his hands on their necks pinning the two councilors' heads to the floor. Their eyes finally reflected the fear they were trying so much to hide.

"You bastards…" he growled. "If ever something happens to her, I _swear_ you'll end up wishing you were dead instead!" Then, he immediately released them. "Leave! Before I could do something we'll all regret!" he shouted. The elders wasted no time in scrambling to their feet and leaving the room. But before they completely left through the door where Gaara was still standing, the Kazekage sent them a death glare indicating the same promise Naruto had told them. Then, he stepped aside to let them pass after they looked down and gulped.

"Naruto, I should go check up on the Naoshi. I've noticed earlier that grandpa Oda needed help in comforting Kumiko-san. I'm sure he currently needs more if ever he announced the kidnapping to his remaining clan members" Kiba said. "At the least, I'll try to reassure them."

Naruto raked a hand to his hair in a sign of exasperation or perhaps exhaustion. Then, he sighed and nodded. "Thanks, Kiba" he muttered.

"I just hope there's a way to rescue Hinata" Kiba said rather miserably, his eyes downcast. Then, he left with Akamaru.

Naruto laughed bitterly, his blue eyes reflected the sadness and hurt he was currently feeling. "I don't deserve the Hokage title if I lose my cool so easily huh, Gaara?" he all but whispered as he took in the current state of his office.

Gaara stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him. He silently regarded Naruto before replying, "While this may be true, you couldn't blame yourself for snapping at your councilors' insolence." He had said this so seriously that Naruto couldn't suppress his chuckle despite what had happened.

"You think so too?" he asked with slight amusement in his voice. "I was beginning to think that _I'm_ the one who's abusing my privileges."

Then, silence loomed over them as they contemplated on what to do next. Naruto was the first to speak up.

"You know, I'm still planning on searching for Hinata" he said. Gaara curiously looked at him, wanting to hear what he has to say. Then Naruto continued, his eyes, filled with determination looked back at Gaara's jade ones, "If they don't allow a search party, I'm searching for Hinata…_myself._"

Surprisingly, Gaara liked the sound of that…despite knowing full well of the consequences that would happen. But that didn't matter as of the moment. "Then, I'm coming as well" he said.

Naruto seemed puzzled and astonished by this since his eyes widened and his mouth opened. But he immediately recovered and said, "Thanks, Gaara, for being a good friend." Naruto smiled.

"_Thank you, Gaara" Hinata had softly said. "You're a kind and good friend."_

Gaara's eyes widened a fraction. What made him remember that?

"I know you and Hinata-chan had just been friends lately but I hadn't expected for you both to be this close so fast to the point that you would want to come with me" Naruto said as he looked outside the window of his office. "I guess Hinata-chan's really that influential in making friends."

Now that Naruto mentioned it, why had he wanted to come? Was it really because he was worried about Hinata's well-being as her friend? Or…was it something else? Was it really possible that the reason was the latter since Gaara had admitted to himself that Hinata was "a friend but not a friend"?

"_Signs of being in love #23 says that if you love someone, you wish no harm to befall on them" Temari had read to him from the book she pulled out from who-knows-where._

Gaara mentally shook his head. Now isn't the time to be thinking of trivial things like that.

"Gaara, we'll leave from this window. Once we get out of this tower, we'll _never_ stop dashing until we're fully out of the village and out of sight. You ready?" Naruto asked the red-head. He already had one foot placed on the window sill, all ready to leave.

"Yes, but—" Gaara would've suggested to use his sand for transportation since it's much easier and stealthier for they'll be up in the air. But before he could say it, Naruto was already out of the office. So, Gaara decided to just follow after the blond Hokage.

* * *

The forest in the evening was very dark considering it was a moonless night. The tall trees further darkened the path as its shadows loomed over the area. The whole place felt lonely and scary. But to Hinata, it was nothing but blurry. She was staggering and the least she could do as of the moment was to hide the intense pain she was feeling. Her hands were behind her bound together with a rope and so were Shiro's and Kuro's, who were clearly still shaking with fear and on the verge of tears. The dark of the night didn't stop the large group of bandits from continuing their journey and forcing their captives to come with them.

"Dude, something's wrong with this one" a guy with brown hair and face mask said, eyeing the back of the blue-haired heiress strangely. "She walks weird."

"That's because she's injured, jackass" said another guy with a similar face mask as the other one. His hair was black and his eyes were brown. "Anyway, don't pay attention to her."

The first one who spoke checked Hinata's body for any wound. Then, his eyes landed on Hinata's bloodied left waist. "Oh, I see now" he said with a nod. "Dude, let's heal her first." This earned him a punch on the head from his companion.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. The lot of us won't like it. Plus, she's a ninja. Or are you stupid enough to forget that? She can heal herself anytime she wants to."

The brown-haired guy looked at him stupidly. "Then, why ain't she healing herself?"

"Why, I don't know!" his companion almost shouted, a frown etched on his face in annoyance. "Why don't you try asking her, then?! Maybe that way we'll know!"

"Oh, okay" the brown-haired bandit replied with a nod and obediently did as he was told. The black-haired guy could only slap his forehead and watch his companion dumbly walk to Hinata. "Uh…excuse me, miss," the brown-haired guy started. "Why aren't you healing yourself?"

There was no response from Hinata. She didn't even acknowledge the presence of the bandit beside her. She just stared straight ahead towards nothingness with her face and eyes blank as if she was to pass out any second now.

"Oh, I get it" the bandit said, his face lit up with whatever came to his mind. "You don't know how, huh? I heard not all ninjas know how to heal themselves, especially when they specialize in combat. And seeing you fight earlier, which was pretty cool by the way, I can—"

Another punch on his head by the raven-haired bandit cut him off. "You idiot! You call yourself a bandit? We don't start a conversation with captives, you dumbass! Now how many times have I caught you doing the same mistake over and over again?"

"Ugh…" the brown-haired guy started counting with his fingers but gave up rather quickly. "I don't know, dude. I lost count."

His companion scoffed. "Don't rephrase the familiar sentence, stupid. You didn't lost count! You don't know _how_ to count!"

"Oh…right" he replied as it was something that just struck him.

"Cease your shouting over there! We don't want someone tracking us" a large man ahead of the group with gray hair said, his back facing them as they continued to walk.

"S-sorry…" the two bandits muttered at the same time.

All was quiet once again. Only the sound of their footsteps and the rustling of leaves and grasses could be heard. And as the second passed by, Hinata's hazy vision was getting worse. Her breath came out in pants and her face was sweaty. She was feeling dizzy, a feeling that used to be so familiar to her, and she knew that she wouldn't be conscious for long. The pain from her injury was getting worse to the point of numbness. The wound she got from the earlier combat was still open and untreated, giving a passage for the blood to continue flowing out of her body. She can even feel it pouring down the side of her left leg.

She wanted to heal it. But with her bound hands, she was unable to. Yes, she can free herself easily, but if she does, this will only alarm the bandits surrounding her and the Naoshi twins and will only result in more bloodshed—on their part, of course. But at the same time, Hinata couldn't guarantee the safety of the twins if ever that happens. The bandits were _too_ many for her to take care of. There are probably around fifty of them, mostly brawny and gigantic. She even received the wound from a two-handed sword that was swung at her aiming for her head. She was fast enough to avoid her head from leaving her body but was slow enough to get sliced in the waist.

"Shiro, are you alright?" whispered Kuro shakily to her younger twin.

Shiro opened her mouth to respond only to close it again, realizing she can't find her voice to speak. So, she nodded her head instead.

"I'm afraid too. So, don't worry. Besides, Hinata-sama is here with us. I strongly believe she won't let the bandits harm us" Kuro tried his best to sound reassuring. It seemed to work seeing as how his younger twin's tense shoulders relaxed a little bit. He said nothing more and looked straight ahead, shuddering at the memory of the fight that commenced before their very eyes.

"_Hakkeshou Kaiten!" Hinata had suddenly shouted. Kuro and Shiro whirled around just in time to see a glowing rotating blue sphere in front of them. Due to the quick rotation, the weapons that were aimed at them were deflected and thrown far away. The blue sphere gradually disappeared revealing Hinata with her Byakugan activated._

"_A Hyuuga, eh?" a figure landed from a tree in front of them. "I must've known you had activated your bloodline limit. Else, we wouldn't have done that. If the deflected weapons had hit any of us, it would be a problem" he said this without feeling, a smug look etched on his face. The man, with black hair and green eyes that seemed to be filled with malice, wore a black short-sleeved shirt and black pants with a kunai pouch strapped on his right leg. He was a missing-nin, obviously. _

_Just as the man had said that, two figures came out of their hiding behind the trees. They wore face masks but Hinata and the twins were sure that they have the same smug look behind the cover. Hinata automatically stood in her fighting stance, ready to take them down if needed. It turned out that it was definitely needed. Without warning, the two bandits leapt at Hinata in a fast motion, sword at hand, and attempted to attack her. In a blink of an eye, the two bandits landed hard on their backs, blood sputtered from their mouths. Hinata had used gentle fist to hit their chests in an incredible speed. _

_The black-haired missing-nin, who looked like the leader out of the three, appeared amused by this. He stepped forward, silently saying that it was his turn to face the heiress. There was a moment of disconcerting silence as the two ninjas stared at each other, silently analyzing the other. Then, in a swift movement, the man completed doing his hand seals and shouted an Earth element jutsu. The ground quaked violently beneath Hinata and the twins followed by the cracking of the earth. Hinata realized what was happening and immediately grabbed the Naoshi twins and leapt out of the area that was already crumbling away and forming a huge and deep hole._

_The man smirked. "Saw that coming, huh? Then…how about this!" He slammed his hands on the ground. Countless boulders floated fast above Hinata. She immediately pushed the twins away from her and performed the Hakkeshou Kaiten, barely making it as the boulders fell down. All of it was deflected. And as soon as no more boulders fell, Hinata wasted no time in swiftly dashing towards her opponent's back. He hadn't noticed her due to her speed; to this she took advantage, shouting, "Eight Trigrams, Sixty-four palms!" The man spun around, wide-eyed in shock, only to be hit by Hinata consecutively. _

"_Two! Four! Eight! Sixteen! Thirty-two! Sixty-four!"_

_The last strike knocked the man several feet away from her. Once he hit the ground, he remained motionless. He was already unconscious._

_There was a moment of silence as everything that happened processed on their minds. Then, there was a clapping from Shiro and Kuro. _

"_Hinata-sama…amazing!" Shiro exclaimed in awe. "I…I…I can't believe you were so fast! I didn't even see you move at all. I mean, I didn't see you at all!"_

"_I-incredible, Hinata-sama" was all Kuro could remark at the moment._

_Hinata offered a small smile to them but immediately whirled around and grabbed the kunai aimed at her. Then, with one quick motion, threw it back towards the enemy with extreme precision. A pained cry was heard from a tree not far from them. Soon enough, a limp body came into view and fell hard on the ground, the kunai stabbed in his chest._

_Shiro and Kuro gasped in horror. Hinata turned to them and apologized. She almost forgot they weren't used to seeing things like that. But Hinata hadn't really killed the person that appeared to be another missing-nin. He was just unconscious. She had never liked the idea of killing herself. For this reason, she avoids it as much as possible._

_Not long after that, several figures came out of hiding. The three stared incredulously at the huge number of the bandits. Hinata immediately executed her stance. Still eyeing the opponents warily, she whispered to the twins, "When I give the signal, run as fast as you can towards the village and don't look back…I repeat, do NOT look back." She waited for no reaction; her focus still on the bandits. With her Byakugan, she noticed some of them have chakra systems that indicate their efficient use of chakra. It was a group consisting of thieves and missing-nins. Most were bandits, of course._

"_She defeated them quite easily…that Hyuuga" one of them spoke._

"_A pretty skilled kunoichi, if I do say so myself. Pretty AND skilled" chuckled another._

"_It was a good thing we learned our lesson from the Konoha guy and his huge dog and increased our number. Konoha ninjas…they're very strong, ain't they? Unfortunately for us, we have to deal with them since this area with Naoshi is the closest to us."_

"_What you say? We have quite a catch here"_

"_Aye. We have not one, but two Naoshi. One Hyuuga just added to the list. And it seems were lucky enough we caught a member from the main house!" _

"_Them eyes are so precious. Makes me wanna capture 'er more. What ya say? What ya say, eh?"_

"_I say…CAPTURE 'EM ALL!"_

_A battle cry erupted from the whole group as they raised their big swords and other weapons. They all eyed Hinata and the Naoshi twins like how a hawk watches its prey._

_It was then Hinata gave the signal, shouting, "NOW!" Shiro and Kuro bolted out from the place and ran as fast as they could. The bandits had started to make chase but was blocked by Hinata. She attacked and dodged, defend and attack once more. She was doing quite well when she noticed some of them took another route to capture the twins. In a flash, she left and tried to catch up to the twins before the enemies could. Thankfully, she made it just in time to knock out the opponents who were about to grab them. But the group of bandits she left behind had already caught up with them giving Hinata no time to relax. She did her best to make the protection of the Naoshi members a top priority, killing some enemies in the process. She had no choice but to do so, or else they would die instead. _

_The battle went on with only Hinata as their opponent. It was difficult to hit her, much less take her down. It took them longer than they expected to finally restrain Hinata. What surprised and annoyed them the most was the fact that there were a lot of them and they had only one opponent they couldn't even defeat unless most of them were restraining her. One of them got too carried away that he almost killed the Hyuuga heiress, earning himself a punch in the gut from his companions. _

_They debated for a while if they should treat Hinata's wound. In the end, they decided they wouldn't, assuming that she could easily escape. In order to prevent this, they didn't treat the wound in order to weaken Hinata. Sure, they took into consideration of her medical jutsu. That's why they had her hands tied behind her tightly so she definitely would be unable to perform her hand seals._

_Unkown to them, before they all left, Hinata dropped her handkerchief to the ground to tell anyone from the village of where she was. But she didn't just drop her handkerchief; she placed a small amount of chakra to it that the sensor ninjas among them couldn't feel right away. So if ever anyone has found it, most probably a ninja, her chakra signature would be identified immediately._

Hinata stopped walking, unable to go on any further. One of the bandits pushed her none too gently while ordering her to walk. The force sent her to the hard ground, and the pain from the impact made her eyes closed in submission to unconsciousness.

And as she slept, she wondered. She wondered who would come and find her…

* * *

The rising of the sun in Konohagakure indicated another morning filled with pleasantness. The birds chirped happily and the whole village was bathed in the warm morning light. It was a breath-taking sight that greeted every citizen a good morning.

And in the office of the Hokage, the door suddenly flew open. "Naruto! I hadn't expected you to be up so…" Sakura's words died down as she realized there was no one in the room. Her face fell and a gasp of surprise escaped her mouth at the sight in front of her. It was exactly how Naruto had left it. Papers and scrolls scattered all over the room. There were even a few broken furniture and shattered vases. "What on earth…" Sakura muttered.

"Oi, shrimp! Where's…" almost like Sakura, Temari gaped at the room that used to be called an office. "What the hell happened?" Temari asked instead.

Sakura shrugged. "Who knows…" she answered. "May I help you, Temari-san?"

Temari regarded the pink-haired kunoichi for a second before asking her first question, "Where's Gaara?"

Sakura stared back at the blonde woman with eyes wide in shock and confusion. "I don't know. I haven't seen the Kazekage lately. Why, what happened?"

It took a while before Temari could answer, "Nothing. It's just that he didn't come back after leaving his room. I'm certain he went here straight away after I told about what…happened…" Temari trailed off as realization stuck her. Her eyes widened and an alarmed look crossed her face. "Do you know where Naruto is?!" she asked Sakura, almost yelling.

Sakura jumped at the sudden reaction. "Naruto? I-I don't know where he is. Why?" she asked, trying to figure out what made Temari startled.

But the blonde kunoichi all but ignored her question. "Find him! I'll find Gaara! Now!" With that, Temari left the room in a flash.

"What's happening?" Sakura asked particularly no one. In spite of all the confusion she was feeling at the moment, she left to find Naruto.

* * *

Temari ran almost everywhere in the village trying to find her brother, although she already had an idea of where he went. But she wanted to make sure.

"Not here. Not there, either!" she shouted at each place she went to. She abruptly stopped running as she spotted Kiba and Akamaru walking to the direction of the Hokage tower. "Wait!" Temari called out while running towards them. Kiba and Akamaru turned at the same time to the blonde's direction. As soon as she reached them, Temari immediately asked, "Do you know where Gaara is?"

Kiba looked at her strangely. "Isn't he just in the Hokage tower?"

Temari scowled. "You mutt, if he's in the Hokage tower I wouldn't be here" she said, annoyed.

"Beats me. If they aren't there, why are you asking me? Go ahead and ask Naruto…er…but I guess you already asked him. Anyway, I still have to discuss with Naruto about Hinata" Kiba said. "I'm busy so I'll be going now. Come on, Akamaru."

The two started to walk away when Temari stopped them as she said, "You won't be able to discuss with Naruto."

Kiba looked at her over his shoulder and frowned. "What do you mean?"

Temari took a deep breath. She already knew where Gaara went. And it's more than reasonable to say that Naruto was with him. She was about to open her mouth when they heard a shout, a voice that belonged unmistakably to Sakura.

"The Hokage and the Kazekage are missing!"

* * *

**A/N: Ugh! Outrageous! I didn't like the ending of this one. Sorry…Btw, about Hinata's jutsu and combat skills, since she's 18-years old already, I decided she's mastered almost all of the Hyuuga's jutsus and stuff and she's faster than ever. I wanted her cool enough for this story. Hehe! I just love Hinata. Don't you agree?**

**Reviews please! If you have suggestions or ideas, please tell me :) Thankies!**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Gah! I made a mistake! The part when Kiba was telling Gaara what happened, I put in "Neji" when he was out on a mission. So, I changed it into "a Hyuuga branch member" instead. -_- Sorry about that. Also, there's a slight tweaking at the end of chapter 1 but no major changes really.**

**Think of this chapter as a belated Valentine's gift. Be happy. Lol…And, one more thing, check out my new stories please. There's NejiHina and NaruHina oneshot. Cookies for those who'll review them!**

**Warning: Slight OOC and…brutality?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 16**

Sakura's news spread like wildfire throughout the village. Most Konoha citizens panicked, causing uproar.

"What did you say?! The Hokage's missing?!"

"And the Kazeage too?!"

"Why? What happened?!"

"Hyuuga Hinata?! Kidnapped just yesterday?!"

"What will happen to Hokage-sama? Is he going to be considered a missing-nin?"

"Is Hinata-sama going to die?"

"Sunagakure definitely won't be happy to hear that the Kazekage is missing…and in our country at that!"

* * *

Tsunade slammed her hands angrily on the Hokage's table while standing in front of it. "That brat?! Even the Kazekage?!" she bellowed. "What is the meaning of this?!"

"T-Tsunade-sama, please calm down" pleaded a black-haired woman who was carrying a small pig in her arms.

"Shizune, did you know of this yesterday?!" Tsunade asked suspiciously, looking at her apprentice over her shoulder.

"No, Tsunade-sama" Shizune answered. "I would've told you right away."

"Right" Tsunade muttered as she looked away. Then to Sakura, who was quietly standing near the door, she asked, "How did you know of this?"

"Well, earlier, Temari-san told me to go look for Naruto. On my way to leave the tower, I met Utatane-sama and Mitokado-sama. When I told them that the Kazekage couldn't be found and Naruto's not in his office, they told me about his behavior last night. It was then that I heard about Hinata getting kidnapped" Sakura explained. "They told me that Naruto had probably run away. And if Kazekage-sama was missing as well, he must've gone with Naruto."

"I don't believe this!" Tsunade shouted. "What proof do they have?! Maybe those two brats just went somewhere around here in Konoha! Maybe even playing hide-and-seek!"

"Uh…Tsunade-sama? It is very unlikely for the Kazekage and the Hokage to do that childish thing…" Shizune stated.

"Right…" Tsunade muttered. "But maybe they're just somewhere in Konoha" she said. "Sakura, you have yet to search outside, correct? Naruto must be there. Go and find him."

"That won't be necessary, Godaime Hokage-sama" a voice intervened. All heads turned to the now open door where Temari stood with arms crossed over her chest.

"Is knocking deemed unnecessary already?" Tsunade asked indifferently.

Temari ignored this and said, "My brother, the Kazekage, along with your current Hokage went to find and bring back Hyuuga Hinata."

Tsunade crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you so sure about this?"

"I know Gaara. The only places he'll go here in Konoha are in his room and here in the Hokage's office. If not here, wherever Naruto would drag him. And the only place I know he would be dragged to is that blasted ramen shop" Temari confidently said. "However, they aren't in any place I've mentioned. They aren't even anywhere. And knowing my brother, he'd rather lock himself up in his room working his ass off. So if he's not in any place, then outside the village where Hinata is would be the best bet."

Silence loomed over the room as Tsunade processed everything and contemplated on the next thing to do. Then, she turned to Shizune. "Send word to Suna about this and ask for their assistance in finding the Kazekage and Hokage" she ordered. Shizune nodded and quickly left the room. Then, to Sakura, "Assemble the best ninjas available. Make sure to include at least one Aburame, Inuzuka and Hyuuga in the team. They're the best and fastest trackers we have."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama" Sakura said with a nod and left.

"We're finding those two brats."

* * *

"Tailed beast mode, huh?" Gaara muttered as he stared expressionlessly at Naruto's current form. He was glowing with yellow light and was now wearing a high-collared cape.

Naruto grinned at him. Then, he formed a seal and shouted, "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Justu!"

Several puffs of cloud immediately appeared behind Naruto while it extended a few more feet away. The puff of clouds faded away and revealed a large number of perfect Naruto clones all shrouded in tailed beast mode.

"Okay, let's go!" Naruto shouted and all of his clones dispersed to different directions. Gaara and Naruto dashed straight ahead, jumping from a tree branch to another in a fast pace.

"We'll find her soon" Naruto said. "We'll definitely find Hinata!"

Gaara silently regarded Naruto.

The person whom he respects so much…

Naruto has strong feelings for Hinata.

Gaara's eyes suddenly widened and his hand instinctively went to his chest. There it is again…the pain in his chest. Why does he feel so whenever he thinks of things related to love?

"Gaara, are you wounded?" Naruto asked as he eyed Gaara's hand gripping his chest.

Gaara immediately let go and shook his head. Thankfully, Naruto didn't question him any further. He hated to explain the petty feelings he feels out of the blue. "Naruto, why is it necessary to switch to tailed beast mode?" he decided to ask.

Naruto looked at him for a while before answering, "When in tailed beast mode, I can sense negative emotions. I figured we could track the bandits through their malicious intentions. I used my kage bunshins to widen my range and shortening the time to search for Hinata."

Gaara nodded in understanding. He was using most of his sand to search for Hinata as well. Though it wasn't as effective and versatile as Naruto's, he couldn't seem to just stand by and let the blond do all the searching. He admits he's worried about Hinata. Or maybe it's more proper to say _very_ worried about her. He can't even stop his thoughts on how he'll crush all of those bandits. Hell, he didn't even take into consideration of leaving at least one for interrogation.

"_Why do you always take all the credit? Huh, kid?"_ a voice inside Naruto spoke.

"Sorry, Sorry. It's just you don't speak much, Kurama" Naruto said with an apologetic smile.

"_So, you want me to speak every second of the day, huh?"_

"No!" Naruto almost yelled. "No, of course not! That will be hell! I'm just saying you don't speak _most_ of the time that's why I'd sometimes forget you."

Kurama snorted incredulously. _"Forget me? Forget me?! Why, you little shit! Who has been inside you ever since you were born?! How dare you forget me!"_

"I already said sorry, right? C'mon! We weren't buddies in the past. That's why I forget" Naruto tried to reason out.

"_Sure, we weren't. But that's a bad excuse, kiddo. Be grateful I'm even aiding you in this search of yours"_ Kurama grumbled.

Naruto grinned. "Thank you, Kurama"

"_Keh!"_

Gaara eyed the blond before asking, "What's wrong, Naruto? You've been quiet."

"Uh…nothing. Kurama and I are just talking" Naruto replied with a widened grin.

"The kyuubi?"

Naruto nodded and said in a teasing tone, "He's being a girl."

"_You brat! I am not!"_ Kurama shouted.

Naruto chuckled. "And he's denying it"

* * *

"We're being followed" one from the group of bandits, a sensor ninja, informed his companions.

"How many?"

"There are two of them. Both ninjas" answered the sensor.

The group could've laughed out loud, if not only for their need to hide from pursuers.

"Two?" one of them chuckled. "We could effortlessly kill them with this number."

But the sensor had another opinion. "In this case, that would not be the wisest thing to do."

This irked most of them. Is he saying they're weak against just two shinobis?

"What do you mean?" one decided to ask.

"Let me tell you that we're miles away from them. Meaning, these two have very strong chakra that I can sense it immediately. We must be careful. They are definitely powerful."

Some snorted, indicating that they didn't believe a single word.

"Who, you say, could be so absurdly strong, eh?"

"Feh! Strong chakra that you can sense from afar? That's the first time I've heard of such thing!"

The sensor ninja frowned. "Foolish bastards…want me to tell you who would be capable of such power?" He didn't wait for an answer and said, "One possibility, idiots. The Kages!"

Several pairs of eyes widened. Others were wide enough that their eyes could pop out of their sockets.

"Heh! What makes you so sure about that? There are a lot of shinobi who are nearly as strong as the kages!" one of them persisted.

"He's right" agreed another. "Besides, it's impossible for the kages themselves to do the job. They would send out other ninjas for that. Your idea is just plain ridiculous."

The others nodded their heads in agreement.

The sensor ninja sighed exasperatedly. "True or not, we don't want them hindering our plans. It's best to give the captives to us ninjas and we could arrive in two days tops using chakra to boost our speed."

The group decided for a moment. And since there were no objections, the Naoshi twins and an unconscious Hinata were handed over to a small group of their ninjas.

"Hey, should we heal her first?" a ninja who was carrying Hinata by the shoulder asked. "She'll die from blood loss if we don't. And her wound is kinda deep."

"Hmm…none of us knows medical jutsu." said the other "First aid would do. But we'll only stop the bleeding and nothing more. Don't let her take any medicine for fast recovery. This Hyuuga's a tough one. We still want her weak for as long as possible."

* * *

"Ah!"

Gaara turned to look at the surprised Naruto. "You found something?"

"There's a large group ahead of us." Naruto responded. "I'm not sure if that's what we're after. And none of my clones have withdrawn yet. But…"

"It's worth a try" Gaara continued.

Naruto nodded his head. "Let's go, Gaara!"

* * *

"Crap! They're heading towards us!" said the sensor ninja.

"What do you mean? They have a sensor, too?"

"I don't know. But at any rate, we better go this instant. They're fast!"

"Then, hurry up and leave! We'll hold them off" said one of the bandits.

The sensor nodded. Then to the group of ninjas he said, "C'mon guys. Pour half of your chakra to your feet. We must bring the captives there as soon as we can."

"Well then, we'll meet you in three days" a bandit said while tapping his big sword on his shoulder. "Leave the rest to us."

With that, the small group of ninjas left in a fast pace.

* * *

Back in Konohagakure, Tsunade was standing in front of a very large group of Leaf ninjas. Sakura, Sai, Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Shino, and Hanabi were among the few who were assigned to search for the Hokage and Kazekage. Temari insisted to tag along.

Placing her hands on her hips, Tsunade began, "Listen up! The two bratli—uh…I mean…two leaders, Hokage and Kazekage, left last night, as what was reported to me. And it seems they are after Hyuuga Hinata. We have informed Sunagakure of this incident and have asked for their help. Now, I've assembled you here for the same reason. Finding them would be your mission, all of you. Any questions?"

"What if they won't willingly come with us, supposing that we have found them?" one ANBU asked.

"Simple. We will force them to come" Tsunade replied.

"Uh…Tsunade-sama?" Shizune softly called out. "We?"

Tsunade turned to look at the confused Shizune. "Exactly. We. Of course, _I'm _coming" she said as a matter-of-factly.

Shizune's eyes almost bulged out. "What?! No, no, no! Tsunade-sama, you'll stay here! The village needs a Hokage!" she shouted.

"Well, last time I checked, I'm not the Hokage anymore. I have every right to go" Tsunade said. Shizune was about to open her mouth to protest but she stopped her by saying, "That's why, I'm assigning you, Shizune, to take care of the village while Naruto is gone."

Shizune almost scowled at her. _"She says she's not Hokage anymore, but she loves ordering people around like one. Tsunade-sama just wanted to go out of the village and she's making Naruto's absence an excuse to go" _she thought and sighed. "Yes, Tsunade-sama. I'll take care of the village."

"Good" Tsunade smiled at her. Then, she turned to look at the number of her team. It almost looked like half of the Leaf ninja population was there, but that didn't matter. They needed to find Naruto and Gaara as soon as possible. "You all have the communication device?" she asked.

"Yes." The group held up their devices.

"Good. We won't have a problem, then" Tsunade said. "Now, disperse!"

* * *

"They're all huge!" Naruto whispered to Gaara in a tree branch out from the view of the bandits. They have arrived at the area where they found a number of them travelling.

"They don't seem to have Hinata. But something's strange" Gaara said.

"So you've noticed, too" Naruto said. "I can still smell Hinata's faint scent lingering around those guys."

"Let's ask them"

Naruto and Gaara jumped down and landed in front of the group. The bandits instinctively drew their swords.

"Is it them?" a bandit whispered to the other.

"We just want to ask you something" Naruto said. "So, no need for the weapons."

But the bandits didn't move to sheath their swords. "You're in our way. Move…or be killed" said one of them.

"We'll move once you answer our questions" Naruto persisted.

"We don't want to hear it. Now, _move_" the bandit said in a low menacing tone.

"Hey! That's not the way to negotiate!" Naruto shouted, annoyed.

"Naruto, they won't listen no matter what you say" Gaara said. Then, his voice lowered, rivaling the bandit's tone, as he said, "There's no choice but to fight."

"So you won't move, eh?" the bandit said. "Then, we won't hold back! Charge!"

The battle cry of the bandits was almost deafening as they ran towards Naruto and Gaara with their big swords in hand.

But they didn't stand a chance.

Gaara had wrapped all of them with his sand before they even knew it.

"Wha-What is this?!" a bandit exclaimed in horror.

"Thanks, Gaara" Naruto said with a smile. "If not for your sand, I would've taken them in one blow and kill them."

Gaara knew that, like him, Naruto was also in a hurry and the uncooperative bandits were in the way. In fact, he wanted to crush the bandits quickly with his sand, but held the urge. They knew something about Hinata, if her scent was any indication.

"Now, answer" Naruto began. "Did you happen to meet a Hyuuga?"

The bandits fell silent.

"So, you have…" Naruto muttered.

"Where is she?" Gaara asked.

"I…I don't know" a bandit answered in a quivering voice.

"Where is she?!" Naruto repeated.

"We don't know anything! Now let us go!" another bandit shouted.

"You're lying" Gaara said in a low tone. "You know something. Her scent is still present."

"I told you we don't know!" the bandit struggled to get away from Gaara's sand but to no avail.

"You're still denying it?" Naruto growled. "Then we don't have any choice but to let you tell us…the hard way!" he shouted. He held out his hand and formed a rasenshuriken. The bandits stared in awe and horror. "Tell us or I'll _slice_ you all!"

Naruto was bluffing, Gaara knew. He wasn't someone who killed easily. But whether he was bluffing or not, it undeniably worked.

"Straight ahead!" a bandit quickly said. "Two Naoshi and a Hyuuga are held captives by our group of ninjas!"

"Where are they headed?" Gaara asked.

"Outside the borders of Wind country! Please, just spare us!"

Gaara and Naruto's eyes widened.

"Wind country…?" Gaara muttered.

Naruto's rasenshuriken disappeared as he set his hand down to his side. "Thanks for telling us. Let's go Gaara!" Then he leapt off.

Before he released them, Gaara said in a form of a warning, "I hope you haven't hurt her. Or else…"

He left the rest of his words for them to ponder about. And then, he left.

* * *

"Have you searched over there?" a Leaf jounin asked Kiba while pointing a finger to a direction.

"Not yet" Kiba replied. Then, he froze. Akamaru barked. "Yeah, Akamaru. I smell it too" he said.

"What is it?" the jounin asked.

"Naruto…it's Naruto's scent" Kiba said. "Let's go!" he said to Akamaru and the jounin. The three of them dashed to Naruto's direction and soon arrived to an area where Naruto in tailed beast mode was standing. Good thing Kiba and Akamaru were already familiar with his scent whenever he was in this mode. So, tracking him was easy.

"Hokage-sama!" the jounin called out.

Naruto immediately spun around and was surprised to find them. "You guys! What are you doing here?!" he asked.

"Hokage-sama, Tsunade-sama issued an order to search for you and Kazekage-sama" replied the jounin.

"Speaking of which, where's Gaara?" Kiba asked while scanning the area around them.

But Naruto didn't answer them. All he shouted was, "Crap!"

Then, he disappeared in a puff.

"Wha-What just happened?!" the jounin asked.

"Damn! A kage bunshin!" Kiba exclaimed.

* * *

"Baa-chan has taken action!" Naruto shouted to Gaara as they leapt from tree branch to another. "She had sent out Kiba and the others to look for us! We have to hurry up—AAH!"

Naruto fell…

In a trap hole.

"_You idiot!"_ Kurama scolded. _"Watch where you're going!"_

"You son of a fox! If you knew, you could have told me!" Naruto yelled back.

Kurama fell silent. Then, he said, _"I was checking your reflexes, kiddo. Reflexes."_

"Liar! You just wanted me to fall as payback for earlier!"

"_Ridiculous. Blame your idiocy, knucklehead."_

"Traps, huh?" Gaara muttered. "They were expecting us…those ninjas."

"We should expect a lot more of these. Man, they sure don't make it easy for us" Naruto grumbled.

"In any case, we don't have time to waste" Gaara stated. "Let's go."

* * *

"I found Hokage-sama!" a female voice from Tsunade's small radio said.

"_That's the tenth time today..."_ Tsunade thought.

"Aah! It was a kage bunshin! He's gone in a puff!"

"Thought so" Tsunade murmured. "That damn brat's littering his clones everywhere! I'm tired of listening to these reports! All they find are his damn clones!"

"Don't worry, Tsunade-sama" Sakura said, offering a smile. "We'll find them."

"But the sun's about to set. Sakura, we should camp here. We'll find them early tomorrow."

* * *

"They're everywhere! The Leaf ninjas are everywhere!" Naruto shouted, peeved. "Several kage bunshins of mine had already withdrawn so I would know. Baa-chan…she's overdoing it!"

"You're the Hokage. You can't blame her for sending out a lot of people" Gaara said.

"Yeah…enjoy yourself while your village has not looked for you yet. Knowing baa-chan, she had probably told them."

"Naruto, there's—"

"Wah!"

"—a trap…" Gaara finished as he watched Naruto dangle upside down from a tree branch with only a rope tied around his ankle.

"Not again…" Naruto grumbled. "This is the seventeenth time today! No, wait. It's the nineteenth…no…fifteenth, maybe? Gah! I don't know anymore!"

"_Naruto, it's best that you settle for the night. It's already sunset" _Kurama advised.

"No! I still haven't found Hinata! I'm not resting!" Naruto stubbornly said.

"_You've been caught for the umpteenth time now even when there's still light. How do you expect to lessen the possibility of getting caught in a trap again when it's dark out?"_

Naruto wasn't able to respond. Kurama was right. Hinata's captors just set too many traps. And he wasn't keen enough to notice them. How could he go and look for Hinata when he's too busy getting tangled up? He loudly sighed as he freed himself from the rope. "Okay, you've got a point, Kurama. But I don't know if Gaara would—"

"If you're tired, we could stop and rest" Gaara said. He was worried for Hinata, yes. But he was also worried for Naruto. He was clearly tired due to his multiple kage bunshins and tailed beast mode…and the traps. Plus, they haven't stopped to rest for hours, much less sleep. Gaara wanted to find Hinata quickly. But he had to admit even his own vision was getting blurry due to fatigue. He could endure it, but Naruto surely couldn't.

They had to rest.

* * *

The next day, Gaara and Naruto continued with their search. The several traps they encountered and avoided—all by Gaara, mostly by Naruto—were the very reason they didn't succeed in catching up with Hinata's captors that day. But at midnight, they managed to arrive outside the borders of the Wind country.

"All that's left is to find their location" Naruto said. Bringing his hands together, he formed a seal and shouting, "Tajuu kage bunshin no justu!" Multiple shadow clones appeared in tailed beast mode and they all scattered to hasten the search. "This time…definitely…we'll find them!"

* * *

The place was cold. The atmosphere wasn't any better. The whole ambiance of the area was dark and menacing.

Hinata awoke weak and groggy. She stifled a groan at the pain she felt at her waist. She almost forgot she was still injured. Hinata slowly opened her eyes and found herself locked up in a cell, a cold cell. She looked up and found nothing more than a ceiling of rock. She guessed she was somewhere in a cave, judging by the little light permitted into the area and the coldness of the ground. She could hear drops of water in a distance, muffled voices of men, and the sniffling sounds of a few people—probably the prisoners locked in a cell like her. She got up and settled herself in a sitting position, which was a feat for her considering her wound. At least the bandits finally decided to close it and she was no longer bounded.

"Hinata-sama, you're finally awake!" a voice behind her said.

Hinata turned her head to see that the person was Kuro. He looked relieved as he smiled at her. Beside him was a trembling Shiro who was hugging her own knees tight. Her head was buried in her arms as she sniffled and wept as quiet as she could. Hinata shifted her gaze to the people behind the twins and was not surprised by the number she saw. There were a lot of them, boys and girls, young and old.

"We are imprisoned by the bandits outside Wind country" Kuro took the liberty to explain. "It seems we are not the only Naoshi they caught. There were others from different locations." He pointed to the crowd behind him.

"I see" Hinata said, her voice barely a whisper. "Since when have we arrived?"

"Just a few hours ago. Their ninjas took us here in two days. It seemed that they were in a hurry. Someone said that there were two ninjas after us. So, all the ninjas in their group carried us here. We're currently in a cave that could only be their hideout.

Hinata nodded her head as she processed everything.

"Here she is, boss" an approaching voice said.

A figure came into view at the cell. The man, who the bandit called "boss", was dressed in black long-sleeved shirt and black pants. A black hood and face mask was wrapped around his face, revealing only his hazelnut eyes that was looking directly at her.

"_So the leader of the bandits is another rogue ninja"_ Hinata thought as she stared hard at the man.

"An excellent job" said the boss. "You actually managed to capture a Hyuuga heiress. That's worth the time you made me wait."

"Your praise flatters me, boss" the bandit said.

Before walking away, the leader ordered, "Prepare two Naoshis. We're almost short in supply."

"Right away"

As soon as the leader was out of sight, the bandit faced the cell and snickered. "I wonder…who are the two lucky winners?" When the prisoners cowered and looked in horror, he laughed like a maniac. "Now, don't be shy! We assure you a short moment of pain…before you die!" Then, he opened the cell and approached them slowly and threateningly.

The bandits were wise enough to use a technique in the cell that could suck chakra from a person. But if one of their men were to come inside the cell, they wouldn't be affected at all. It was made and designed so that the prisoners were weak to break out or retaliate.

But…

Forming the hand seals, Hinata activated her Byakugan.

…they weren't wise enough.

"Hakke Kūshō!"

The bandit, who was about to grab the hair of one Naoshi, was forcefully pushed away and he hit the wall hard, rendering him unconscious.

"Hinata-sama, don't move too much! Your wound will reopen!" Kuro tried to warn.

But Hinata just turned to the bars. She didn't have time to heal herself. She has to save the others. Pouring out chakra in her hands, she formed razor-sharp chakra blades on her fingertips and destroyed the bars, simultaneously cancelling the technique in the cell that sucks out chakra.

Just as they were about to escape, several bandits blocked their way.

"How are you able to perform a jutsu? You're supposed to be weak" a bandit asked as he glared at Hinata.

"The jutsu you used was not strong enough to restrain me" Hinata calmly answered. "Any shinobi would've easily broken out."

"You lie, woman" the bandit spat out. "The thing's already been tested. It's supposed to be foolproof."

"Hinata-sama is strong. It's that simple" Kuro confidently said.

"You should know when to keep your mouth shut, boy." The bandit glared and began to raise his sword at Kuro.

"Juuken!" Hinata attacked and a strike to the chest stopped the bandit.

"Why, you!" All at once, the rest of them attacked Hinata.

Despite her wound, Hinata defended the Naoshi prisoners. As she was dodging the sword aimed at her chest, she winced as her injury sent bolts of pain. The bandits saw this and started aiming for her waist where her injury was. The attempts failed as she easily evaded and ran to lead the bandits out of the Naoshi members. On her way, she immediately spotted the opening of the cave. There stood a rogue ninja, with his back facing Hinata, casting a barrier around the cave to prevent the detection of their hideout.

"Catch her!" shouted by one bandit.

The ninja casting the barrier spun around to see the ongoing commotion. Hinata rushed towards him and hit him with gentle fist. The barrier of the cave simultaneously dissipated.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gaara and Naruto were still searching for Hinata under the heat of the sun. They were, after all, close to the Wind country.

Sensing the burst of chakra from a distance, they both stopped.

"Naruto!" Gaara immediately called.

"Yeah, I felt it too!" Naruto said. "Let's go, Gaara!"

Both of the kages dashed towards the direction of the chakra and found a cave where battle cries, clashing of swords and screams of pain could very well be heard.

"What the…" Naruto muttered.

"_You might want to get in there, Naruto"_ Kurama advised. _"I think this is what you're looking for."_

"Yeah?"

"_Hurry up and smell it. Your girl's there."_

With a sniff of his nose, Naruto turned to Gaara. "Hinata's in there!"

* * *

"Hakkeshou Kaiten!"

A number of bandits got pushed away, tackling the others standing behind them altogether.

"Don't get caught up now!" one ninja who witnessed Hinata's battle before her capture warned the other remaining.

A loud maniacal laugh drowned all the noise going on around the cave. The battling stopped as all heads turned to a lone figure standing behind all of them.

"Boss?" a bandit tried to question.

The laughter subdued and their leader looked at the panting Hinata with amused eyes. "You are one interesting kunoichi!" he shouted to Hinata. Then, his eyes landed on her injured waist that was once again dripping blood to the ground. "I wonder…if not for your wound, would you have killed all of my men?" He laughed again.

Suddenly, a sensor ninja ran towards the leader. "Boss! We got company!"

His laughter stopped. "How many?"

"Two, boss!"

He burst into laughter once more. "This day couldn't get any more amusing!"

"Boss, it's best if we send the whole army" the ninja said.

Then, the leader seethed in anger. "And why would you say that? You think we're weak?!" he shouted.

The ninja cowered. "N-no, boss. Not at all. It's just that…_they_ are the ones who are very strong" he barely whispered. "Strong enough to kill us all"

"You would do well to explain" the leader said in a menacing tone.

"I…I th-think…we're up against"—he gulped—"t-two kages…b-b-boss"

The leader's eyes widened. He grabbed the ninja by the collar. "How can you be so sure?" he glared at him.

"The group of bandits you sent out to capture the Naoshi members in Fire country have arrived just now and I found them all unconscious just outside the cave except for one who told me they got attacked by two guys with blond hair, wearing a cape with "sixth" written behind it, and red hair, who carried a huge gourd with him" the ninja all said in one breath.

The leader abruptly released the ninja who landed hard on the ground. "I-Impossible…" he muttered with a face full of horror.

"What is the matter, boss?" a bandit asked.

The leader was quiet for a second before turning to his men with blazing eyes. "Why, you IDIOTS!" he shouted at them, making them flinch. "Just who did you capture that could make a _Hokage_ and _Kazekage_ come and…GET US?!"

"Ho-Hokage and K-Kazekage?"

"B-boss, you mean…Uzumaki Naruto and Sabaku no Gaara?"

"Who else?!" The leader began to pace around nervously. "You fools! Just who did you capture?!"

"No one else, boss. For this week, we didn't have any captives except for the two Naoshi and this Hyuuga" the bandit pointed to Hinata who they managed to restrain once again.

"What should we do now? We don't stand a chance, boss! They're the kages!"

Suddenly, there was an explosion on the cave's ceiling. The bandits watched in horror as Naruto and Gaara landed.

Kurama sighed. _"Right…because taking the entrance is too mainstream" _he remarked in a sarcastic tone.

"They were battling, Kurama. They were battling _near_ the entrance" Naruto said.

"_Isn't it all the same? You're here to fight them anyway. Using the entrance won't make any difference. You'll just fight them earlier than this scenario."_ Kurama said.

Then, they heard a nervous chuckle from the leader. "H-Hokage-sama, Kazekage-sama, do you need something?"

Naruto was about to answer, but Gaara beat him to it. "Yes. You took something from us that you shouldn't have" he answered in a low tone. The urge to kill them right there and then was strong. But he had to stop himself from doing just that.

"R-really? W-what is it, if I may ask?"

"Where is Hinata?!" Naruto shouted impatiently.

"Oh, the Hyuuga" the leader nervously laughed. Then, with trembling hands, he signaled for his men to bring out Hinata who they hid behind them. Gripping her by her shoulder, Hinata was brought forward with a rope tied around her arms and waist and a plaster over her mouth. "Idiots! How stupid can you get? Why did you tape her mouth?!" the leader whispered.

"We thought she would scream, boss, and give us away" one of them whispered back.

"_This_ would give us!" Then, to Gaara and Naruto, "Uh…sorry about the tape. My men were just getting her to behave." He removed the plaster off Hinata's mouth.

"Gaara! Naruto-kun!" Hinata called to them.

"Hinata!" Gaara and Naruto said at the same time.

"What is she to them?" the leader whispered to a bandit.

"How should I know, boss?" the bandit whispered back.

The leader, as gentle as he could, pushed Hinata towards the two kages. Naruto caught her as she tumbled.

"Hinata, are you alright?" Gaara asked.

Instead of answering, Hinata just said, "They still have Kuro-san and Shiro-san."

"Hang on, Hinata. I'll get you off these ropes" Naruto said.

Then, the leader spoke, "Now that we've given you back what was rightfully yours, we no longer have any of your possession. You may happily head back now, Ho—"

"What did _you_ do?" Naruto said in an ominous tone. After untying Hinata, they both found out about her reopened wound.

"No wonder we smelled blood" Gaara said, matching Naruto's dark tone, as he glared daggers at the leader. Then, he said to Naruto, "I'll take care of Hinata first. I just have the thing to heal her." Naruto nodded and Gaara picked up Hinata bridal style.

Hinata blushed. "G-Gaara, I can walk" she said, despite the fatigue she was feeling.

"Stay still" Gaara whispered. "Where are they?" he asked, referring to the Naoshi twins.

"I left them outside the cell" Hinata said as she gave him the direction.

On the other hand, the bandit leader was shaking violently under Naruto's glare. "N-n-now, n-now…H-Hokage-sama, h-hear us out first."

"I don't think there's a need to explain. You're a missing-nin, right?" Naruto gritted out. "Then I would be doing your village a favor of killing you!" He immediately formed a rasenshuriken in his hand.

"Th-that's…!"

* * *

"Kazekage-sama!" Kuro exclaimed upon seeing Gaara carrying a very tired and bleeding Hinata, walking towards them.

Shiro and the rest of the Naoshi prisoners turned and looked.

Shiro gasped. "Kazekage-sama, what are you doing here alone?!"

"He's not alone. Hokage-sama is here as well" Hinata answered for him.

"With no escorts?!" Shiro exclaimed incredulously.

"Hinata, let me see you wound" Gaara ordered as he laid her down near the twins.

"Oh no, Hinata-sama's wound did open again" Shiro said while staring in horror at Hinata's injury.

Gaara turned to Shiro, his eyes widened a fraction. "What do you mean? How long was she wounded?" he asked urgently.

Kuro was the one to answer. "Ever since we were captured. The bandits healed her a day later but not completely."

Gaara almost crushed the bottle he was holding in his hand. A day later? Those bastards healed Hinata _a day later_? He looked at the big wound at her waist. They let her endure a wound this big? Gaara suppressed a growl.

They would _pay_.

"Gaara, what's that?" Hinata asked him in a whisper, as that was what she could manage at the moment. Gaara followed the direction to where she was looking, which was the bottle.

"This?" he opened his hand to reveal the bottle oddly familiar to Hinata.

"Is…that…?" Hinata began to ask as she finally recognized it.

Gaara nodded. "Naoshi Arima-san's blood. The one she wanted me to have back in Suna" he said.

"So, you did accept it…" Hinata muttered.

"She insisted..." Gaara said.

A wave of jealousy washed over Hinata as she pictured Gaara bringing the bottle everywhere with him.

"I see" Shiro said. "Kazekage-sama wants to heal Hinata-sama with Arima-chan's blood."

Gaara turned to look at Shiro. "How do I do it?"

Shiro smiled. "Just a drop would do. Pour it to Hinata-sama's wound and she'll be good as new."

Gaara did just that. He removed the cork from the bottle and carefully poured the blood on Hinata's wound. The wound instantly closed and completely healed.

"Amazing…" Hinata breathed out. She began to stand up but immediately sat down, much to her own surprise.

"What's wrong?" Gaara asked with a hint of worry in his voice.

"Hinata-sama's just tired and should rest. Her wound may have healed, but a Naoshi blood can't regain chakra. It just cures wounds and illnesses." Kuro explained.

Gaara nodded in understanding. "Then, I'll leave Hinata to you. I still have something to take care of" he said to the twins who, in turn, nodded their heads.

Before Gaara could leave them, Hinata grabbed his sleeve, making him look at her. "Gaara, thank you for looking for us" she said.

'Looking for _you_' would be a more proper thing to say.

But no way would Gaara say that. And so, he just nodded his head. Hinata let him go and he left.

"Kuro, wanna watch the fight?" Shiro whispered to her twin as Gaara was out of sight.

As he arrived on where he had left Naruto, Gaara found the blond with a rasenshuriken on his hand as he yelled on the leader of the bandits.

"Even if you're not a missing-nin, there are still a lot of reasons to kill you!" Naruto shouted. "First of all, you formed a large group consisting of bandits and rogue ninjas! Second, you captured and killed people specifically from the Naoshi clan!" he raised his rasenshuriken above his head. Then, in a mellow but menacing tone, he started, "And finally, the third reason…"

Gaara stepped in beside Naruto and, with a glare directed to the leader, continued Naruto's words, "Not only were you not satisfied with killing Naoshis, you also kidnapped Hinata." The sand from his gourd swirled dangerously around him, waiting to strike at the opponents.

"That's the worst mistake you ever did!" Naruto shouted. "Rasenshuriken!" He swung his arm and threw it.

"RUN!"

Those who weren't able to get the message right away got caught up in the attack. However, some of those who managed to escape…

"Sabaku Kyū (Sand Binding Coffin)"

… got bounded by Gaara's sand.

"Sabaku Sōsō (Sand Waterfall Funeral)" Closing his hand into a fist, he quickly crushed them.

After witnessing his men getting killed, the leader gulped down hard. "Tch! There's no other option" he muttered. Then, to his men, he ordered, "ATTACK FULL FORCE!"

The battle cries of the bandits and rogue ninjas erupted inside the cave. Rogue ninjas began to form seals and perform their own jutsus. Everything aimed at Naruto and Gaara were easily dodged by the two kages. Defending was mostly done by Gaara who used his sand to protect Naruto and himself.

The bandit leader bit his thumb and brushed his blood on his other palm. He slammed his hand to the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A puff of cloud appeared. And as it vanished, a black panther stood in its place.

"Finally decided to summon me, huh?" the panther growled to his summoner.

"Trouble" the leader said. "The two kages, blond and red."

"Gaara, I'll take care of this" Naruto said. "Let's go, Kurama!" Most of the bandits stopped and looked at Naruto. They were terrified as they waited for his next move.

But…

There was nothing but silence.

With a faint blush of embarrassment, Naruto cleared his throat. "I said, Kurama, let's go!"

Silence…

Seething with annoyance and anger, Naruto growled, "KURAMA!"

"_WHAT?! Stop shouting!"_ Kurama finally answered.

"You stupid fox! Why won't you answer?!" Naruto shouted. "In any case, that doesn't matter anymore. Let's go! Tailed Beast Mode!"

"_Keh! What do you think of me, kiddo?" _Kurama scoffed. _"No way are we going to transform and fight those weak bastards. I'm too strong and valuable for that. Go and think of another option."_

"I hate it when you do that!" Naruto said in frustration as he raked a hand on his hair. "Fine! Another option!" He bit his thumb, brush his blood on his palm and slammed his hand on the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A huge puff of cloud appeared before them. Everyone watched in awe as the cloud faded and revealed a large figure towering several feet above them. It was a red toad—crouching as best as it could inside the cave.

"Oi, Naruto! Just where the hell's this? It's too tight!" Gamabunta, the chief toad, grumbled at Naruto who remained on the ground below.

"Sorry, sorry!" Naruto apologized as he scratched the back of his head.

"H…huge!" Shiro and Kuro, who watched with the rest of the Naoshi members in a corner, commented at the same time as they looked at Gamabunta who took up almost all the space in the cave.

"We're in a cavern" Naruto explained. "But no need to get so cramped here, Gama oyabin!" he grinned.

"Heh!" Gamabunta smirked. "You're implying that I could go ahead and destroy the cave, huh? Well, no objection on that!" He began pushing on the walls of the cave.

The sound of rocks cracking was heard as it grew louder and louder until the cave finally broke. Rocks and boulders that began falling to the ground got pushed away by Gamabunta, except for those that fell below the bandits who panicked and ran. Light from the sun blinded them for a moment before everyone finally managed to adjust to their "remodeled" battlefield.

* * *

Tsunade and Sakura stopped in their tracks as they heard a loud crumbling sound of something several miles away from them followed shortly by the violent shaking of the ground. Their heads turned simultaneously and they stared in shock at the gigantic figure of Gamabunta.

"Th-that's…!" Sakura exclaimed.

Tsunade smirked. "No other than." Then, she reached over her communication device and spoke over, "I want everyone to the giant red toad this instant."

* * *

Meanwhile in Wind country, Baki and several other Sand ninjas, both jounins and ANBUs, were just heading out of their country's borders to search for Gaara and Naruto. A loud crumbling sound and the quaking of the earth made them stop short.

"W-what's that?!" a Sand jounin pointed to Gamabunta who came into view for all to see.

Recognizing the large toad, Baki told them, "There's no need for us to search for the Kazekage anymore."

"What do you mean, Baki-sama?"

"That's the Sixth Hokage's summon" Baki explained with a smile. "We'll definitely be able to find the Kazekage over there."

* * *

"Now that feels _much_ better" Gamabunta said as he stretched himself on the now spacious area. "Okay, back to business, why was I summoned?"

"What was it again?" Naruto pondered for a second before remembering. "Oh, right! I wanted you to take care of the other summon—eh, where is it?" The panther wasn't anywhere on sight.

"Maybe it got crushed by the boulders?" Gamabunta suggested apathetically with a shrug.

"He's not yet done, you fools!" the leader, who just pushed a rock off him, shouted at them. "He's over there, waiting for the right time to lunge at you guys!" He pointed to a huge boulder where the panther was actually hiding from the chief toad.

Gamabunta removed the boulder and saw the panther summon. "Oh, there you are," he dryly said.

The panther looked up and nervously smiled, showing his white sharp teeth. "M-meow?"

The bandit leader slapped his forehead in disappointment. "You pathetic summon! You're not helping at all!"

"You're right…" the panther said. "I should go back." Without waiting for a response, he quickly disappeared in a puff.

"Well, the panther's gone. That means I could go now, right?" Gamabunta did just as what the panther did. He disappeared without waiting for any response. Did Naruto mind?

No, not at all!

…a little.

"Why do they always do that?" Naruto exasperatedly asked the leader.

"Believe me, I've been wondering the same thing for several years now" the leader answered as annoyed as the blond Hokage.

"Naruto, I'll take it from here." Gaara said as he stepped in. "Sabaku Taisou (Sand waterfall Imperial Funeral)!" Slamming his hands on the ground, Gaara created an enormous avalanche of sand using the sand on the ground, drowning and crushing the remaining bandits and rogue ninjas on its way.

The final blow ended it all.

"Whoo! That took care of them!" Naruto exclaimed with a grin.

"One got away" Gaara said rather calmly.

"What?! Who?!" Naruto asked incredulously. Instead of answering, Gaara just pointed. Naruto's eyes followed the direction to where he was pointing and saw the bandit leader in a distance tip-toeing away from them. "Why aren't you dead?!" Naruto shouted at the leader who abruptly froze in spot.

The boss slowly turned his head and looked at Naruto and Gaara over his shoulder. Nervously chuckling, he said, "I…got away just in time?"

Without a word, Naruto formed his rasenshuriken and raised his arm, preparing to throw.

"Wait, Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out, making Naruto stop and look at her inquisitively. She was sitting with the other Naoshis a few feet away from the two kages. "We still have a lot to know from him. We need him for interrogation" she explained as loud as she could for Naruto to hear, which was not much considering her weariness.

"Right" Naruto agreed. His rasenshuriken vanished and he immediately grabbed the leader by the collar before he had any chance to run away. "You sure are one lucky guy" Naruto said to him.

Gaara approached Hinata and knelt in front of her. Looking straight into her lavender eyes, he asked with obvious gentleness, "How are you feeling, Hinata? Can you walk?"

Hinata smiled. "I—"

"Hinata!" shouted Naruto who was already running towards them. He had already finished tying up the bandit leader and, who knows how he did it, rendered him unconscious. As soon as he reached them, he knelt down and drowned Hinata with questions. "Are you alright? Where else had they wounded you? Did they try to do anything funny to you? How did you get caught in the first place? What did they wa—"

"Naruto-kun, I'm fine" Hinata gently interrupted when Naruto's questions didn't seem to stop any sooner.

Naruto fell silent while he looked over Hinata as if checking on her. Then, he fixed his gaze on her. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked with uncertainty.

Hinata forced herself to brightly smile. "Yes, I'm sure."

Gaara silently watched, seeing as he couldn't and _wouldn't_ interrupt. Why would he? There wasn't any need to. The other Naoshi members looked at the scene as well with the same silence.

Then, the next thing that happened shocked all who watched.

Naruto cupped the unsuspecting Hinata's cheeks, placed a light kiss on her forehead and pulled her into an embrace. Hinata froze. "I'm glad you're safe" he whispered to her ear.

Gaara immediately felt bolts of pain shot in his chest as if he was being stabbed in the heart. His hand instinctively clung to his chest. Shiro noticed this but didn't say or do anything as she decided to continue to observe.

All of a sudden, Gaara, Hinata and Naruto sensed a large number of chakra approaching. Hinata quickly activated her Byakugan, despite the low chakra left, and looked shocked to see who it was.

"Konoha ninjas" Hinata said. "Following a few feet behind them are Suna ninjas."

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief. "They're late" he playfully said.

Not a moment later, said Konoha ninjas arrived with Tsunade on the lead.

"Baa-chan, yo—"

"YOU IDIOTS!" Without any warning, Tsunade punched the two kages squarely on top of the head, almost shoving them to the ground in the process.

And that wasn't even chakra-enhanced.

"G-Gaara!" Temari worriedly called as she rushed to her brother who was trying his best not to shout and roll on the ground in pain like Naruto was currently and openly doing. Temari glared at Tsunade. "There wasn't any need for that! No one punches my little bro!" she shouted.

But Tsunade just ignored her. With a frown on her face, she began to lecture. "Leaving the village alone and without escorts! What were you two brats thinking?!" she shouted. "You caused such uproar! Look at this!" she pointed to the number of Konoha ninjas present.

"Did she bring the whole village with her?" Shiro whispered to Kuro.

"I requested a search party to look for Hinata! But the old man and old woman flatly refused me! And so I did it myself and Gaara went with me" Naruto explained when he recovered.

"That doesn't matter!" Tsunade shouted. "Did you know how foolish your actions were?! 'The Hokage and the Kazekage escaped Konoha to find a kidnapped woman' is just silly!"

Then, the Suna ninjas arrived with Baki on the lead.

"It's about time you guys got here" Temari said to Baki and the others.

"Why? What's happening?" Baki asked.

Temari pointed to Gaara who stood still in his place getting lectured by Tsunade. "That's what's happening."

"…and do you know how much trouble it was to find you two?!" Tsunade continued scolding. "Naruto's clones kept disappearing and they're just about everywhere that everything reported to me about finding you turns out to be false! It was stressing how I get to hear the same thing over and over again!" Then, she pointed to Naruto. "So, now…you owe me three bottles of sake for the trouble you caused!"

Naruto's face was incredulous. "Three?!" he echoed. "Baa-chan, don't make my act—"

"Yamato!" Tsunade called.

Yamato immediately stood in front of Naruto and made the scary face he was well-known for. "_Three_ bottles of sake, Naruto" he repeated rather ominously, making Naruto cower.

"Fine…" the blond grumbled.

"Good" Tsunade said with a triumphant look on her face. "Now, let's see to Hinata." She approached the heiress and checked her. "You're all clear, Hyuuga Hinata" Tsunade said and smiled after she was done.

"Thank you, Tsunade-sama" Hinata said with a bow.

"Really, don't get captured again" Tsunade said to her with a sly grin. Then, she lowered her voice to a whisper as she said, "It will make two powerful guys go crazy." Hinata slightly blushed.

It was amazing really how two leaders of two great villages ran away only to search for one woman.

"Let's go!" Naruto said to everyone. Then, he went to Hinata and reached out a hand to her. Hinata looked at his hand as if contemplating on something and, after a few seconds, she took it with her own, making Naruto grin at her.

Temari saw the exchange and her eyes quickly flicked to her brother. He looked hurt...well, his eyes say so. She slowly walked her way to Gaara and patted him on the head, making him look at her. She offered him a smile. "Gaara, there really are times of jealousy. Don't worry, it's normal" she said.

He stood there, watching her as she left.

Jealousy?

He looked back at Naruto and Hinata with their hands clasped together. He felt the pain once again, like his heart was being ripped apart.

It was then that Gaara remembered the things Temari had said to him.

"_Signs of being in love #5 state that if you love someone, when you're around that person, you're not your usual self" Temari had read._

He always feels that way around Hinata. The very reason he ends up confused.

"_Signs of being in love #12 states that you find an excuse just to see the person."_

Does he do that? Was going to the waterfalls while telling himself he was just getting fresh air considered an excuse? Apparently, yes.

"_Signs of being in love #16 state that when that person is in pain, you want to ease and comfort them."_

He undeniably did that. Back when Hinata had cried in front of him, he felt the strong urge to make her stop crying. Back then, he didn't know why he suddenly hugged her.

"_Signs of being in love #20 state that if you love someone, you get hurt when they're with another person of the opposite gender" Temari had read and looked at him. "Gaara, that's what you call jealousy. Remember, okay?"_

Clutching a hand to his chest, he realized…he was jealous. Sabaku no Gaara…was jealous!

"Kuro?" Shiro called.

"Yes, Shiro?"

"It's best that you give up on Hinata-sama now. And so should Arima-chan on Kazekage-sama" she advised out of the blue.

Kuro looked at her in confusion. "Why?"

"Because…" Shiro began. Her eyes were still fixed at the scene in front of them. She saw Gaara staring at Hinata. And although Naruto was beside her, he hadn't noticed. He was busy talking with the others.

He hadn't noticed that Hinata and Gaara were looking at each other.

With a smile, Shiro continued, "Because Hinata-sama has another person she loves." She turned to look at Kuro, "And that person…feels the same way."

Gaara unconsciously lifted a hand to his forehead as he lightly touched the kanji written on it.

By the sand in his gourd…he was in love.

* * *

**A/N: Sappy, I know. In any case, this is by far the longest chapter I've written. And since I'm done, I'm off to do my report due in two days O.o Sorry for those who were disappointed. You may tell me what you want to happen next. I welcome all of it.**

**Okay, I need 10 reviews for this chapter. So, R&R!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 17**

"And then…you held his hand?!" Tenten exclaimed incredulously. "Why—I—you—why?"

Hinata closed her eyes and breathed a sigh. She wasn't sure if Tenten's reaction was exaggerated or not. Team Gai was out on a mission the day she got kidnapped. And so, when Tenten and her team returned and heard the news, the brunette rushed to Hinata at the Hyuuga compound and squeezed her out for information. Actually, Neji was the first one to reach the heiress to ask her if she was alright. After narrating to him what had happened, she was able to convince him to rest. That was when Tenten came and she had to repeat her story. And as soon as she told the brunette about her holding hands with the Hokage,—she asked for every single detail—Tenten was astounded.

Opening her eyes, Hinata looked at her friend. "It's not what you think, Tenten-san" she said in her soft voice. "It was out of gratitude that I held Naruto-kun's hand. I may have hesitated at first. But thinking about it, I don't really mind since it's just the touching of hands."

Tenten's eyes grew wider than it already has. "Don't mind? Hinata…you don't mind?!" she stood up from her seat and looked at the heiress like she was crazy. "You used to be afraid of Naruto's advancements! And don't even get started on asking me how I knew. I know you, Hinata, because you're my friend."

Hinata's reaction was to freeze in realization. Tenten was right. She _used_ to be afraid of the slightest advancement Naruto makes. But why did it seem to be otherwise? And come to think of it, he even called her name without an honorific countless of times that day she was rescued. But she hadn't mind. Why?

Gaara's face flashed in her mind.

Her face automatically turned red.

"Hinata? What's wrong?" Tenten asked worriedly.

Hinata's wide eyes darted to Tenten. "I…nothing" she muttered in reply. What was wrong with her?

"Are you going to visit the Kazekage? It's his last day in Konoha, right?" Tenten asked. When Hinata blushed, she smiled knowingly. Temari's plan was effective after all.

"I'm visiting him later" Hinata said.

"Eh? Why not now?"

Hinata eyed her; a subtle suspicion was present in her eyes. "I can't go to him now. I'm still talking to you, Tenten-san."

The brunette waved her hand in dismissal. "Oh, don't mind me. You just go to him" she said. Hinata hesitated, so Tenten pulled her from her seat. "Go on" she urged.

With a nod of compliance, Hinata left.

Staring at her retreating figure, Tenten whispered, "I'm glad you're changing in a good way, Hinata. And I hope this time, you'll end up happy."

* * *

Staring blankly at the report on his desk, Gaara sat still on his chair as his thoughts wandered.

He still couldn't quite believe it. Since when had it started? Since when had he begun to love someone more than a friend? Since when did he have romantic feelings for Hinata?

When the image of the midnight-haired heiress flashed in his mind, his heart beat faster, his face heat up, and he felt a warm fluttering feeling inside of him. Everything he felt…the new emotions stirring in him…everything felt wonderful and pleasant.

But then, he caught himself. He was positive he was in love with Hinata. But the question was…what's he supposed to do about it?

There came a soft knock on the door to his room.

"Enter" he called out. The wooden door opened and an all too familiar figure stepped in. Gaara's eyes widened a fraction and he sucked in his breath. "Hinata?" he whispered, surprise was evident in his voice.

Hinata's cheeks began to color. "Gaara, I…am I disturbing you with your work?" she asked.

He looked down at his desk where the scroll was laid untouched. He vaguely wondered if he was spacing out for about an hour now. His attention shifted back to Hinata who was still standing by the door, waiting for his response to decide if she should stay or not. Gaara shook his head. "I wasn't working" he told her honestly. "I was busy…with other stuff."

Hinata tilted her head to the side—which made her much cuter, in Gaara's own smitten opinion—and her curiosity made her ask, "What sort of stuff?"

He cleared his throat. "Nothing of much importance" he said with an impassive look.

"I see" she said with a smile. "I'm just here for a visit since…" her smile faltered as she looked down at the floor. "Since you would leave tomorrow" she finished with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Are you saying you're going to miss me?"

Hinata abruptly raised her head and looked in surprise at Gaara behind his desk. His face remained impassive but when he said that, she knew he was teasing.

But that didn't keep her from blushing a deep shade of red.

"E-eh?!" was all Hinata could exclaim.

Gaara's jade eyes fixed on hers. What made him say what he said was beyond him. All he knew was he would undeniably miss Hinata when he'll leave. Maybe he wanted to know if she'll miss him too. And so he repeated, "Are you going to miss me…Hinata?" He said her name with so much emotion.

Hinata bit her lower lip. She lowered her head and slowly nodded.

Gaara stood up from his chair and slowly approached Hinata. It reminded him of the time they hugged in the same place. "Will you really?" he asked monotonously.

She nodded again.

"Then, say it." He continued walking to her.

"I…" she bit her lip but willed herself to continue. "I'll miss you…Gaara."

"Louder" he demanded.

Blushing harder, she said in a louder and clearer voice, "I'll miss you, Gaara."

Taking the last few steps in front of her, he stood and looked intensely into her eyes. Without warning, he pulled Hinata into his embrace. He heard her gasp but she relaxed in his arms almost immediately and soon had her arms wrapped around him as well.

They can't help it. They were suckers for hugs. And they only find satisfaction with each other.

"I'll miss you too, Hinata" Gaara whispered to her ear. And as he knew she would do, she hugged him tighter.

"I can never thank you and Naruto-kun enough for coming to save me" Hinata said to him. She had her head on his shoulder.

Suddenly, he remembered Naruto and Hinata hold hands and he unconsciously held her closer. He was aware of Hinata's situation with Naruto. And so he wondered why she had allowed him to hold her hand.

But he wasn't going to ask. His pride prevented him. At least he now knew he's jealous. If he hadn't realized his feelings, he would have wallowed in confusion by now.

"I'm just glad you're safe" he finally said. When he heard Hinata giggle, he pulled away a little and looked at her with questioning eyes.

She stopped giggling but her lavender eyes still held mirth in them. "You said the same thing Naruto-kun had said" she said in her soft voice.

"That's probably because I felt the same way" he said nonchalantly and hugged her again.

"I see" was all she said. She released her hold on his waist only to wrap her arms around his neck.

It was the first time she did so, that's why Gaara was surprised. But he didn't do anything to pull away. The placement of her arms was, to be honest, much preferable for him.

"What should I do to repay you?" she asked.

"Nothing. It's not necessary" he replied. Hinata fell silent. So, Gaara thought she let the subject drop. But he immediately thought otherwise. Hinata loosened her hold around his neck and turned her head to his pale cheek. He felt her breathe against his skin, making him slightly shiver. Then before he could ask what she's doing, he felt her lips rest on his skin.

Hinata had just placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. Well, not actually his cheek, but his sand armor.

But the effect on Gaara was the same anyway. His heart that has been beating unsteadily had worsened, he had the difficulty of breathing,—not the first time it happened but he just noticed—his face underneath his armor heat up.

Sabaku no Gaara literally froze in spot.

Kami, how her lips were soft and smooth…definitely better than they looked. And, yes, he could feel it despite having his sand all over his face. Her kiss was short and when she pulled away, he wished she would repeat what she just did.

"Since you asked nothing," Hinata began in a whisper with her cheeks sporting a red blush. "I gave you a little something I could give as of the moment."

A clearing of a throat was heard. "Am I disturbing something?" said a voice by the door just a bit away from Hinata and Gaara.

Both their heads turned at the same time to find Temari standing leisurely at the door frame, a knowing smirk graced her face. They hadn't heard the opening of the door at all.

With a red face, Hinata immediately pulled away from Gaara. She hung her head, unable to look into either of the two siblings.

"Now tell me, since when did this hugging activity of yours start?" Temari asked as she raised an eyebrow at them.

Hinata fidgeted while Gaara remained impassive as if nothing happened. He was trying very hard not to give himself away of the nervousness he was currently feeling—both on getting caught and the kiss.

"Well? Are you going to talk?" Temari persisted.

"W-we've been doing so for a long time now" Hinata answered.

"It's not your concern, Temari" Gaara said while blankly staring at his blonde sister.

"Of course it is, little Gaara" Temari countered. "I'm your sister and the eldest. I should know what's going on." Then, to Hinata, "So you mean, you've been hugging several times already? How come I never knew? Or at least, caught you until now?" She grinned with mischief.

Gaara was the one who answered. "That's because we don't want you to know."

Temari scowled at her stoic brother. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I…I should go" Hinata quickly said. "Thank you for your time, Gaara." She bowed to the two of them and left the room.

As soon as Hinata was gone from sight, Temari turned to face her brother with a face filled with delight. "Come on, Gaara! Tell me what's going on!" she gleefully exclaimed.

Gaara regarded her for a moment before he admitted, "I love her. I'm in love with Hinata."

Temari gasped and squealed. "Finally! You're now going out, right?"

"No" he replied.

She stopped. "Huh? Then, why were you hugging just now? What do you suppose that means?"

"Friendship" he whispered.

Temari almost gaped at him. "Friendship?!" she echoed incredulously. "Well, it certainly didn't look like one! You call that intimacy you both displayed 'friendship'?!"

His sister's choice of words was making Gaara uneasy. Intimacy, she says. Did they really look intimate just now?

"Tch! Kids these days…" Temari grumbled.

"You sound like an old man" Gaara remarked nonchalantly.

"I don't care! I'm frustrated!" she snapped. "You hug Hinata like that and yet you're just friends?!" She looked at her brother with such intensity in her eyes. "Gaara, you told me you love Hinata, right?"

He nodded. "But I don't know what to do with it."

Temari blinked. Then, her features softened. "Just tell her, silly."

"How?"

She couldn't help but smile at her brother's lack of knowledge on the matter. She was his sister, and she knows what he's been through. And so, she couldn't blame him for not knowing. "Tell her your honest feelings. Tell Hinata you love her."

It was Gaara's turn to blink. "It's that simple?"

Temari shook her head. "Now, it may sound simple. But, believe me, it's not" she told him.

He slightly frowned. "I don't understand"

"Confessing your feelings is always difficult, if you mean it. I don't want to discourage you by telling you why." Putting a hand on his shoulder, Temari offered a smile. "You'll know why. Just like what I've told you regarding your questions in love, remember?" she said in a gentle voice.

"_Gaara, even if I explain to you the concepts of being in love, you won't understand until you experience it yourself. Why people fall in love, you ask. Every question in your mind regarding that will all be answered once you learn how to fall in love yourself." Temari had once said to him._

Gaara nodded his head and Temari set her hand back down to her side. "In any case," Temari began. "I came here to tell you that the Leaf had already found out about the intentions of the bandits. Naruto wants to be the one to tell you."

Gaara nodded again and was out of his room in a second.

* * *

"Naruto-kun, you called for me?" Hinata asked as soon as she stepped inside the Hokage's office.

"Wow! That was fast, Hinata!" Naruto grinned at her. "And yeah, Ibiki had already made the bandit leader talk."

Hinata smiled. Ever since the day she was rescued, Naruto began calling her name without an honorific. And, as what she told Tenten, she already hadn't mind. It's probably because of her gratitude for him. "It's not unusual for him to accomplish his task so fast."

"I expected no less from him. He left me with this scroll" Naruto said as he waved a scroll in his hand. "It's his report. I'll tell you as soon as Gaara arrives."

"I see."

There was a moment of silence between them.

"Naruto-kun—"

"Hinata—"

They stopped as they realized they talked at the same time. Then, Naruto could only chuckle and Hinata could only smile.

Once Naruto's chuckles died down, Hinata spoke. "You go first, Naruto-kun."

Naruto shook his head and smiled. "Nah, you go first, Hinata."

"Okay." So, she began, "I forgot to thank you for saving me, Naruto-kun. So…thank you." Hinata bowed low in her expression of thanks.

Naruto was embarrassed by her formality. "Hinata, there's really no need for that! Please raise your head."

She did as he said. "Then, what do you want me to do?"

He thought for a moment before beaming at her. "I know! Let's go to lunch together!" he said enthusiastically.

"Lunch?" Hinata repeated. "Okay" she said with a smile that made Naruto stare at her.

"I just realized," Naruto muttered. "Hinata, you've changed."

She looked at him, uncertain how to respond.

"Recently, you seemed…livelier." He fixed her gaze on hers. "I wonder, what changed you?"

She didn't answer him. Instead, she asked, "Is it a good thing or bad?"

Naruto chuckled. "Of course it's a good thing" he replied.

"I'm glad" she said. "Oh, what were you about to tell me, Naruto-kun?"

"I had already told you. I was really planning to have lunch with you so it's great timing you asked what I wanted."

"I see" Hinata said with a nod.

Then, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

After the door opened, a chunin came in. "Hokage-sama, the Kazekage has arrived."

"Let him in" Naruto said with a smile.

The chunin nodded and left. Soon after, Gaara stepped inside the office as the door was closed behind him. He immediately spotted Hinata. He certainly hadn't expected her to be there.

"I figured Hinata would also like to know her kidnapper's intentions. So, I called for her" Naruto explained when he saw the question in Gaara's eyes.

Gaara looked at his blond friend for a moment and nodded.

Naruto gestured at the two seats in front of him. "Have a seat" he said. When Hinata and Gaara were seated, Naruto unrolled the scroll and began. "According to Ibiki's report, after capturing and killing a Naoshi, the bandits sell their blood."

"A black market?" Hinata asked.

"Exactly" Naruto replied. "They were going to do the same with your eyes, Hinata. If not that, they'll use it for themselves. With your bloodline limit, they could have more power. But, as what's stated here in the scroll, the bandit leader formed a group of rogue-nins and bandits only for the sake of living. Capturing a lot of Naoshi members and selling their blood helped with that."

"Where did they sell their goods?" Gaara asked.

"In..." Naruto paused and eyed Gaara cautiously. "In Wind country."

So the reports Gaara received once in a while about illegal goods back in Suna was their doing. He'll take care of the matter as soon as he returns home, Gaara noted to himself.

Naruto rolled back the scroll and placed it somewhere among the pile placed on his desk. "So, Gaara, what will you do with the Naoshi clan? Oda jii-chan's group and the other captives of the bandits were asking me earlier."

"I've already thought about it." Gaara replied. "The whole clan would stay in Suna."

"Does your sister know?" Naruto asked.

"I've discussed it with Temari and she agreed. She had sent word to the Sand village" Gaara said. "I have yet to discuss it with the Naoshi clan. Whether they want to or not, my decision is final. I don't want any more of this to happen." He glanced over to Hinata. "Not anymore…"

"I have to agree with you on that" Naruto said with a nod. Then he stood up from his seat and stretched. "Okay, everything's set! We're done!"

"Naruto" Gaara called.

"Yeah?"

"Did you receive any punishments?"

Naruto's shoulders slumped. "I almost forgot. In fact, yeah, I did." He frowned. "Tsunade baa-chan managed to convince the council to give me a lighter punishment since we brought back Hinata" he said and his eyes landed on Hinata who was looking at him worriedly.

"What punishment did they give you, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Don't worry, it's just heavy loads of paperwork—gah…I really hate doing it. They gave me something I'm worst at." Naruto pouted.

"I'll help you with it" Hinata offered.

"You can't, Hinata-chan. That's part of my punishment. Loads of paperwork with no help for a month, that's what they said." Then, he grinned. "Lucky for me"—he formed a seal—"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" Immediately, a clone stood beside him.

"I'm surprised you don't always do that" Gaara said monotonously.

"Believe me, I do. But I usually get discovered by either Tsuande baa-chan or Sakura-chan" Naruto replied.

"How do they know it's not you?" Gaara asked, interested on the topic. Naruto's clones were a perfect image of Naruto himself. It intrigued Gaara how they were able to differentiate the clone from the original when there was no visible difference.

Naruto grinned. "They don't!" he answered. "That is, until they beat up my clone. Then, I'll get in trouble." He chuckled. He made his way to Hinata and hooked an arm around her shoulder. "Anyway, we gotta go, Gaara. I'm taking Hinata to a lunch date."

Gaara's eyes darted from Naruto to the arm around Hinata's shoulder. Then, his eyes went to Hinata. She was blushing…and fidgeting. He waited for her to remove Naruto's arm.

But she didn't.

His heart coiled and the familiar pain of jealousy flowed inside him. Then, realization came to him like a slap on his face. No, make that punch.

He loves Hinata. Hinata loves Naruto. Naruto loves Hinata.

From the very beginning, there was never a spot for him. Confess his feeling to Hinata? He would certainly be rejected.

Gaara watched the two people close to him leave the office.

What was he thinking? He was well aware of their feelings towards each other. Yet, he had the audacity to fall for Hinata. Why had he allowed himself to be so…_vulnerable_? Why had he dropped his guard down around the only girl he has already fallen in love with? He knew better. Gaara knew better than to allow himself a heartbreak. Yet, even knowing these things, he still continued letting himself love Hinata.

* * *

The next day came, the day Gaara, Temari, the Naoshi clan, and Konoha escorts leave. They were all at the gates of Konoha saying their goodbyes to Naruto, Hinata and their other friends in the Leaf.

"You're sending out some Sand ninjas to fetch the other Naoshi members that are in other countries?" Shikamaru asked Temari.

"Exactly" the blonde kunoichi nodded her head.

"Take care, Gaara" Naruto said as he shook the Kazekage's hand in his. "You can always come and visit us here anytime."

Gaara nodded. "You can also in mine."

"I'll keep that in mind" Naruto said and smiled.

Gaara turned to Hinata who was standing beside Naruto. "Farewell, Hinata" he said.

Hinata gave him a smile. "Farewell, Gaara. Be careful on your journey" she said and bowed.

Gaara just nodded in response. Oh, how he resisted the urge to pull her into a hug in public. He has made his resolved last night. He didn't come to their meeting place for him to set his mind straight. He wondered if Hinata waited for him to come.

"Hinata-sama!" shouted Daisuke and was rushing towards the heiress. Arima, Shiro and Kuro, Kumiko and Oda were behind him, walking in a normal pace. As soon as he reached Hinata, Daisuke bowed down to her. "Hinata-sama, I haven't been able to thank you for protecting Shiro-chan and Kuro-kun! They narrated to me everything!" He straightened himself up only to fist his hand in front of him. "I could almost imagine how cool you were in combat!"

Hinata couldn't help but smile.

"I'm going to miss you, Hinata-sama" Daisuke said with a smile. "You take care."

"I will" Hinata nodded. "You too."

Daisuke nodded his head. Then, Oda's group approached Naruto.

"Hokage-sama," Oda began. "Thank you for having us in your village. We are eternally grateful to you" he finished and his entire group bowed to Naruto.

"Don't mention it, Oda jii-chan" Naruto said and smiled.

After exchanging goodbyes, Gaara and the others left. Before Konoha was out of sight, Gaara looked back to Hinata.

He's returning to his own country, his own village. He would resume his duties and responsibilities as Kazekage and everything will return back to normal. He won't be seeing Hinata for a long time. And when that happens, he'll surely forget about his feelings for her.

He loves Hinata and wants her to be happy. He respects Naruto and he also wants him to be happy. The two people he respects and loves has feelings for each other. And so, as their friend, he'll kill his emotions so they would be together and he could support them.

"Gaara," Temari whispered. "Have you confessed to Hinata?"

He's willing to sacrifice _everything_ for them.

"No"

His love started…and ended so fast.

* * *

**A/N: End of Story. Thank you.**

**I'm kidding. Sorry, can't help it. XD Thank you for the reviews everyone. You made me smile. I love the previous chapter too. Hehe…**

**R&R, 10 reviews**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Thank you for the 102 reviews even though most of it was bribed. I will forever love you guys.**

**Special thanks to:** **benihanas****, ****maxridelover****, ****Aoi Kitsune12****, ****AaviyanTage****, ****McKazekage****, ****Veraozao****, ****and ****PsychoticSky****.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 18**

Tenten was playing with a kunai on her right index finger when she heard an audible sigh. She turned her head to her left to find Hinata staring blankly at the Hyuuga garden. They were sitting on a bench inside the Hyuuga compound not so far from it. A week has passed since Gaara's departure. Everything was still normal and nothing in particular has changed. That was, except for Hinata. Another long sigh was heard from the heiress.

"Okay, that's it" Tenten finally said, catching the attention of her friend. "Spill the beans."

Hinata just looked at her like she came from another planet.

With one last swing of her kunai, Tenten swiftly and expertly returned it to her pouch. "Why so depressed, Hinata?" she specified her question.

"Depressed?" Hinata echoed incredulously. "Me?"

The brunette slightly slump her shoulders and pointed to an empty space on her right. "No, her" she dryly said. "Of course you, Hinata. I mentioned your name, hadn't I?"

"Oh" was all Hinata said as she shifted her gaze back to the gardens.

Tenten waited for a few more seconds waiting for Hinata's response. But there was only silence followed by the heiress's long sigh. She frowned. "Hinata, do you plan on answering my question?"

Hinata's eyes darted to Tenten's. "Pardon?" she dumbly asked.

It was Tenten's turn to sigh. "I asked why you're so depressed."

"Depressed? I'm not depressed, Tenten-san" Hinata replied.

"Yeah, sure, you're not." Sarcasm was clear on her voice. "Then, would you care to explain what's with the sighing you kept on making every now and then?"

"I do that?" Hinata sounded surprised.

Knowing that the direction of the conversation would go nowhere she wanted, Tenten decided to take a different route. "It wasn't just today, Hinata. It has been a week since you were acting so gloomy. What happened?" she asked.

"I…I don't know, Tenten-san. I didn't even know I was acting that way" Hinata admitted.

Tenten regarded her for a moment, looking intently on her lavender eyes. She was sure she was seeing sadness on Hinata's eyes. Then, realization struck her and her lips curled into a sly grin. "You miss him, don't you?"

"Who?"

"The Kazekage" Tenten replied. "You miss Gaara."

Hinata's cheeks immediately colored. "Y-Yes. O-Of course I miss Gaara."

Tenten's grin widened. "Are you two going out already?"

The heiress's entire face flamed. "G-g-g-going o-o-o-out?! O-o-of c-c-course n-n-not!" she stuttered out.

"What do you know? Your stuttering is back" Tenten said with a chuckle, amused by the situation. All she did was talk about the Sand leader and the shy stuttering Hyuuga came back.

"T-t-t-tenten-san, p-p-p-please! L-l-l-let's end this c-c-conversation" Hinata begged desperately.

But Tenten ignored her plea as she said confidently, "You love him."

Hinata stiffened.

"You're depressed because you miss him. You miss him because you love him. Simple as that, Hinata" Tenten stated with a smile.

"No."

"Huh?" She looked curiously at Hinata.

"I don't…love Gaara" Hinata slowly said. She missed him because he was a friend who became very close to her. And she certainly wasn't depressed because of him.

But then again, she had to ask herself. Why was she depressed?

"Uh-huh." Tenten certainly wasn't convinced. "So, what's the meaning of your sighing?"

"It doesn't mean anything, Tenten-san. I just sigh" Hinata answered softly.

"It doesn't seem that way to me. I'm pretty sure there's a hidden meaning" the brunette persisted. "Longing, perhaps?" she suggested.

"Longing for what?"

"Oh, I don't know, something maybe? Someone? Someone you love? Specifically, someone in Sunagakure doing his work as the Kazeka—"

"Tenten-san, I told you I don't love him!" Hinata blushed. "Not like the way you're thinking, at least. Gaara's my friend. Nothing more."

"You say that but your face tells me otherwise" she continued to tease.

"I don't love him" Hinata repeated.

Tenten lazily waved a hand. "Yeah, you said that already."

"It's because I really don't."

"I'm beginning to think that _you're_ convincing _yourself_ that" Tenten smiled knowingly.

And she hit the bull's-eye.

Hinata was immediately silenced despite thinking that what Tenten said was a silly notion. She didn't need convincing. She didn't love Gaara romantically. She was _certain_ she didn't.

She didn't need convincing. Not at all…

"Oh right," Tenten suddenly said. "Since it seems you and Gaara are pretty close now, what would happen with Naruto? Have you even asked him yet?"

Hinata blinked at her. "Ask him what, Tenten-san?"

"The incident three years ago."

* * *

"How are you faring, little bro?" Kankuro asked from the sofa he was leisurely seated in. When he got no response from Gaara, who was stamping some documents on his desk, he tried again. "You have no idea how much I suffered this hell of a place of yours. I don't even want to look at it."

"Then why are you here?" was Gaara's monotonous response.

"Well, I—uh—was just checking on you" Kankuro said. "So, what's up?" He decided to change the subject. But Gaara was silent once again. "Any perks that happened back in Konohagakure?" Kankuro persisted.

Gaara's hand that was holding the stamp stopped midway from what it was doing. For a few seconds, it stayed like that. "Nothing" Gaara finally replied before he continued stamping.

"What a bad liar. What's with the pause earlier?" Kankuro thought out loud before he could stop his own mouth from opening. He froze for a moment before secretly thanking Gaara chose to ignore his comment. But he couldn't help but wonder what had happened in Konoha. If he hadn't brought up the question, he probably wouldn't have figured out that something occurred.

Kankuro snapped back to reality when someone knocked on the door. Gaara gave his permission to enter and the door swung open as Temari marched inside.

"I'm back! You guys missed me?" Temari said and smiled at her brothers.

Kankuro snorted. "Don't joke around. Of course not."

Temari scowled at him but smiled almost immediately. "I missed you too, Kankuro."

The puppeteer's face filled with horror and he cowered in his seat. "Temari, you're scaring me" he said, his voice shaking. "What the hell happened? Why are you smiling?"

"How rude!" Temari scoffed.

Gaara decided to intervene before his two siblings could make his office a battlefield. "How was it?" he asked his sister.

Temari smiled at Gaara. She walked towards his table and handed him the report in her hand. "Easy peasy" she replied. "It was an A-rank mission anyway, so nothing serious."

Gaara took her report and read it for a while. Then, he nodded his head indicating that she was dismissed.

Temari exited the office only to be followed by Kankuro. "Did something happen back in Konoha?" he asked her.

She regarded him for a moment before answering, "Now that you've mentioned it, yes. What made you ask?"

"Nah, just wondering. Since when I asked Gaara the same question, he didn't say anything. But he acted weird. What happened?"

Temari didn't answer for a while as she pondered on his question. "I'm not supposed to be the one to tell you. It's Gaara's business" she replied. She started walking again when she stopped and looked at her brother over her shoulder. "I could tell you only one thing though" she said with a smile. "Our little brother has grown up."

* * *

Hinata has definitely changed.

Naruto was sure of that.

He wasn't as stupid and dense as he was in the past. His being Hokage improved his intellect greatly—in Naruto's standards of course, which was another way of saying that he grew smarter _a little bit_.

In the past, he noticed that Hinata was suddenly cold towards him. But it was more proper to say that she was indifferent towards him. Her blushing and stutters were gone and in its place was an expressionless mask that he hardly could stand. He tried asking her what's wrong. But every time he did so, she would appear scared.

Of something.

Of him.

But back then, he just shrugged the matter off like it was nothing—more like he didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think that Hinata didn't like him…didn't _love_ him anymore. And so, ever since then, he tried his best not to ask about it. He tried his best to ignore it.

And the matter was forgotten and was placed on the back of his mind. Or so he wanted to believe.

After a lot of things happened, he gradually noticed the changes on Hinata. Gone was her emotionless façade, her blushing was back and, sometimes, her stutters too. But the thing he missed a lot was her warm smile. Hinata may have been smiling at him but he couldn't help but notice that her smiles always didn't reach her eyes. But he didn't say anything about it. So when her genuine smile returned, he couldn't help but feel very happy.

But despite that, he found it strange.

He couldn't help but wonder what possibly happened to make Hinata change…to make the kind and smiling Hinata come back. What made her change?

_Who_ made her change?

Then, suddenly, he didn't feel like knowing the answer. He wasn't sure why. All he knew was that when he asked himself that question, he felt a very strong feeling of possessiveness towards Hinata. She may not be his yet, but they have already confessed to each other. He was just waiting for Hinata, thinking that they weren't dating yet because she was too shy about it. So, while he waited, he pursued her. But every time he made a move on her, he didn't understand why things would go wrong. He would just fail in his attempts. Maybe because Hinata has a lot of suitors who follow her practically everywhere around Konoha, maybe that's why. However, even though things didn't' go the way he wanted it to, he was still sure of one thing.

He loved her. He still loved Hinata.

Though he couldn't help but notice her strange relationship with Gaara. He may be convincing himself it was just friendship between them, but deep inside, he didn't believe it. When Gaara left for Suna after his fever, he noticed the way Gaara looked at Hinata. He knew Gaara. He could tell that he had started to take interest on Hinata. The way he looked at her said so. That was why he felt uneasy about it—though he did his best to ignore that feeling while he convinced himself that he was just over-thinking it. And since Gaara had returned to his own village, there hadn't been any more uneasiness.

But little did Naruto know that he made a mistake.

When Team Eight asked for a mission, he sent them to Suna regarding the Naoshi clan. It was another way of thinking that he sent Hinata to Gaara. And when Hinata came back to Konoha, she was never the same indifferent Hinata again. The sweet Hinata they knew was back.

Who made her change?

Naruto still didn't want to know. When Gaara came to Konoha in Oda's request, he noticed the changes in Hinata and Gaara's relationship. To him, they seemed closer…and friendlier. Hinata started to genuinely smile a lot. She started to blush, to stutter…but not to Naruto.

But to Gaara.

Who made her change?

A wave of jealousy flooded in him. He didn't want to know the answer. He didn't want to _admit_ it. Hinata changed. She was happier. And he was happy of that fact.

Who made her change?

Hinata's relationship with Gaara was just friendship. That's all. But every time he saw them together, he could immediately think of them as a couple. He had to look and think again, to see that they were not. They were just friends.

Who made her change?

Does Hinata still love him? Once he asked himself that. He doubted. But he was thankful to know the answer when he and Gaara went to Hinata's rescue. He kissed Hinata on her forehead and even hugged her. She stiffened, but he assumed that she was just caught in surprise. He hugged her then. He was glad she didn't push him away. He offered her his hand. She took it. And they held hands with him smiling and grinning all the time. Hinata still loved him. But when he glanced over Gaara to check on him, he caught him staring at Hinata. The uneasiness he felt came back. His eyes slowly shifted to Hinata…

Who made her change?

Gaara.

Gaara made her change.

"Naruto-kun?"

A soft voice very familiar to him sounded behind the door to his office, snapping Naruto back to reality.

"Hinata? What is it?" he asked. "Oh, come inside."

Hinata did as said. "I've been knocking a few times. Am…Am I disturbing you?" she asked uncertainly.

"_She was knocking for a while now? I guess I was too engrossed in my thoughts…" _Naruto thought then shook his head in response to Hinata. "I was just thinking, Hinata. You're not disturbing anything" he said while offering her a small smile.

Hinata breathed a sigh of relief. "I see."

"Sit down, Hinata-chan." He gestured to a seat in front of his table. But Hinata gently declined. And so he asked instead, "Do you need something?" He watched her slightly fidget.

"I just want to ask you something, Naruto-kun" she replied.

Naruto shifted on his seat comfortably, waiting for Hinata's question. "Yeah?" he gently prodded her.

Her mind was in turmoil. Earlier, when Tenten mentioned it, she decided to finally ask Naruto. She wanted to ask him what happened three years ago. Truthfully, she almost forgot. But when she did remember, she couldn't stop herself from rushing to the Hokage's office. She _had_ to know.

What would happen between them afterwards would depend on his answer.

But _not_ because she loved Gaara. Even so, she still felt nervous about it. What would he say? What would Naruto say? What if…what if—

Before she could think of any more, Hinata stopped herself. Thinking of questions she couldn't answer by herself would only make her more anxious. It was either now or never.

Looking at Naruto with determination in her eyes, she began, "Three years ago, after I got back from a five day long mission, I went here straight to report to you." She paused to check Naruto's reaction. When he just looked at her, waiting for her to speak again, she continued. "But when I was about to knock on your door, I stopped when I heard a voice. It belonged to Sakura-san" she said in a shaky voice. She slowly clutched a trembling hand on her racing heart.

Naruto's eyes widened as he realized where Hinata was heading. "Hinata…" he started in a whisper. "You…heard that…?" he finished weakly.

Her eyes reflected pain. "I saw it too, Naruto-kun."

He slowly rose from his seat and made his way to Hinata. She instinctively took a step back. Seeing this, Naruto abruptly stopped in his tracks. "Hinata…" was all he could mutter.

"Naruto-kun…why?" her voice cracked as she said the last word. Her eyes sparkled with unshed tears. Tears she was trying so hard to hold back.

Naruto tentatively took another step forward. He was relieved when Hinata didn't move a step back. "Hinata, it was a misunderstanding" he tried to explain, half-begging her to listen. "That time, Sakura-chan didn't know I had already confessed to you" he quickly added before Hinata could say anything.

Her brows knitted together in confusion. "Then, why did you…kiss her?"

In two strides, Naruto immediately closed the distance between them. "I didn't kiss Sakura-chan. She was the one who kissed me. I reacted late in stopping her since I was too shocked that she, who was the last one I expected to like me, was confessing her feelings to me." Then, he sighed. "Hinata, I'm _very_ sorry you had to see that. I…I didn't mean for that to happen. But…I…I rejected Sakura-chan after that." He slowly took her hands in him. Hinata allowed him, staring blankly at their clasped hands. "Sakura-chan said she understood. She accepted my feelings for you. After that, we still hang out and acted like nothing happened. We're still friends."

Hinata didn't say anything as she let everything sink in. Was it true? Was everything Naruto saying true? Could she really trust him? After all the pain she felt?

"_Try asking him, Hinata. I'm sure Naruto has an explanation to that." Gaara had told her._

Naruto did have an explanation. A _reasonable_ explanation. Was it really alright to believe him? Hinata vaguely wondered what Gaara would tell her in that situation. _"Gaara…"_

Naruto watched Hinata's features soften. He felt her hands held his a little tighter. "Hinata, please believe me" he whispered to her.

Hinata slowly looked up into his blue eyes. Those same eyes that she used to love so much, those eyes that made her blush madly and faint whenever they look at her, those eyes that captivated her.

Oddly enough, she didn't feel that way any longer.

But at that time, she didn't give it much thought. "I…" she softly began. He asked her to believe him. The question was…would she? "I…I believe you, Naruto-kun" she finished.

Naruto let out the breath he had no memory of holding as he chuckled in relief. On impulse, he pulled her into his embrace. "Thanks…Hinata" he whispered to her ear.

Hinata closed her eyes and relaxed in his arms. Though uncertain, she wrapped her hands around his waist and buried her head in his chest. "I'm sorry I doubted you, Naruto-kun" she said.

"Don't worry about it. You had the right to, anyway. It was my fault."

Hinata shook her head on his chest. "I should've asked you this sooner. It was my fault for being too scared to know what you'll say."

Naruto fell silent as he realized something. "Was that the reason why you grew indifferent towards me?"

She froze. Then, she slowly lifted her head to look at him with her cheeks sporting a pink blush of embarrassment. "Y-yes" she confessed. "I th-thought you and Sakura-chan were dating."

He chuckled. "When I confessed to you, Hinata, I've made up my mind already. I was sure of my feelings for you. I was sure I no longer loved Sakura-chan like I loved you." After he said that, Naruto watched Hinata's cheeks change from pink to red. It was then that he realized that he indirectly confessed again. He felt his own face heat up. "I—uh—um…" he stammered, not sure of what to say.

Hinata smiled at his panic. "I'm just glad I was finally able to ask you" she said. Then, she added, "If it weren't for Gaara, I wouldn't have had the courage to do it."

Naruto's face fell and his heart clenched at the mention of Gaara's name. His hold on Hinata loosened.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata was looking at him with a confused expression. "Is something wrong?"

He tried smiling but it didn't turn out to be convincing. "Gaara told you, huh? How did he know?"

Hinata thought for a moment before answering. "Well, at first, it was only Tenten-san who knew of my situation. Apparently, she told Temari-san who, in turn, relayed it to Gaara" she explained. "Gaara confronted me about it. He told me to ask you."

"I see"

"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?"

He forced a grin. "Nothing."

Hinata was about to say something when the door flew open. Both Naruto and Hinata's heads turned at the same time to find Tsunade clutching a bottle of sake on her right hand. Her left was holding the door that was just pushed open.

"My, my" Tsunade raised a brow in amusement at the sight that greeted her. "What have we here? In the middle of making babies?" she teased.

Hinata and Naruto immediately pulled away from each other, both red-faced.

"S-stop joking, baa-chan!" Naruto shouted. "And how many times have I told you to knock before entering?!"

Tsunade just leisurely made her way to the seat in front of Naruto's desk and sat herself. She didn't even bother closing the door. "Knock?" she echoed and slyly smiled. "What's that?" she said in a playful manner.

Naruto gritted his teeth together. "Why are you here? I thought you were out gambling again."

Tsunade sighed and shifted her gaze to the view outside the window of the office. "I lost" she muttered and took a drink on her bottle.

Naruto snorted. "Oh, I couldn't believe it" he sarcastically said. "You're drunk, Tsunade baa-chan. Go to sleep" he said but quickly added, "In your own room."

Tsunade stopped midway in resting her head on the table. "Fine, fine" she grumbled as she pushed herself up. She was about to leave the room when she abruptly stopped to pull out a scroll and tossed it to Naruto. He easily caught it and looked at her curiously. "I happen to be the one who got that. It's a message…from Suna." With that, she left while swaying unsteadily.

Hinata was about to rush to Tsunade to help her when Naruto held an arm in front of her.

He smiled in reassurance. "She may look like she's going to fall any minute now. But, believe me, she can handle it" he said. Then, his attention went to the scroll in his hand. He opened it and read its contents. "Medic, huh?" he mumbled.

"What is it?" Hinata asked.

"Nah, just Suna asking that we send a few medic-nins over there" Naruto replied.

"Why? Did something happen?"

"There has been an uprising on one part of Wind country. Government issues…on the new daimyo. But it has already been taken care of. Apparently, the aftermath caused lots of injuries and the hospitals in Suna was stuffed with patients. They are currently understaffed. And Gaara believes there would be another revolution soon enough" Naruto explained. "But it's not just Konoha. He's probably asking a few from other villages, too. It's really hard to send out medic-nins, you know, especially because you could only count them with your hands." Then, he walked towards his chair and sat. "Well, I'll just let Sakura-chan select her team. She's an expert in this area."

* * *

"I can't go" Sakura directly said after Naruto explained everything in his office. Hinata had already gone for her training appointment with Neji.

"What? Why?" Naruto gawked.

"Shizune-sempai and I are holding a training program for aspiring medical ninjas for three months. I can't just leave everything to her" Sakura explained. "Haven't I told you about this already?"

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and stared outside his window. "I guess I forgot" he muttered before turning back to Sakura. "Then, who's available?"

The pink-haired kunoichi thought for a moment before shrugging. "I don't have anyone in mind. Ino's on a solo mission and all medic-nins available are too inexperienced to be…" her words died down as she thought of someone. Her face brightened as she suggested, "Hinata! You could make Hinata the lead medic."

As much as it was a good idea, something made Naruto disagree. He wouldn't want to send Hinata to Suna. Gaara's there. That would mean they would grow closer again, if so that happens.

"Someone else" Naruto said. "Suggest someone else."

Sakura shot him a confused look. "Why? Hinata's more than perfect for the job, Naruto."

He sighed and raked a hand on his blond hair. "I don't want her in Suna" he admitted. "She'll be far away. And we just made up."

Pink brows furrowed in confusion. "Made up? Did something happen?"

Naruto narrated to her about what occurred.

"Kami…she saw that?" Sakura covered her mouth with a hand. A blush of embarrassment stained her cheeks. "No wonder she acted weird after she returned that day."

Naruto nodded. "In any case, suggest anyone but Hinata" he said.

"Fine. Just give me time" Sakura replied and left the office.

After staring for a few seconds at the door Sakura just retreated from, a sigh escaped Naruto's lips. Then, he chuckled bitterly. "I'm being selfish…aren't I?"

* * *

**A/N: End of—*slapped, kicked, punched, strangled, etc. by readers* OOF! Urgh…I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I won't do that again. XD Anyway, I'll be making my projects and reports for midterm so I won't be updating for a while…I think. It depends really on how busy I'll be. So, please be patient with me.**

**Until then, R&R, 10 reviews.**

**Btw, what do you want to happen next? **


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 19**

Gaara was sitting at the rooftop of the Kazekage tower staring up at the white glowing full moon of the evening sky. The cold night air gently grazed his pale skin and all was silent except for the soft howling of the wind. It was in the middle of the night. The surrounding's almost pitch-black if it wasn't for the dim light the moon was emanating. For a desert, the weather's considered to be perfect.

And everything would have turned out to be fine if Gaara was in a good mood. His outward appearance may have remained impassive but he was at loss of what to do.

Six days straight…for six days straight he managed to _completely_ stop thinking about Hinata. He successfully accomplished such difficult feat by drowning himself with loads of work that never ends. Everything would have gone perfectly well if he just hadn't decided to get some fresh air and got greeted by the full moon. Of all the nights he could have gone out to the rooftop, it had to be a night where there's a full moon. And of all the things he could remember, be it the most dreadful memory of them all, it had to be the nights he was with Hinata.

Hinata, Hinata, Hinata.

As soon as his eyes landed on the glowing moon, all the memories he had with Hinata had flowed all at once like gushing water that he could just explode from the lot of it. It was like all those days forbidding himself to think about her had a terrible consequence.

And now, as he continued looking up at the moon, he couldn't help but remember the first time they talked with each other. It was the first time she called him by his name.

"_Beautiful, isn't it?" Hinata had suddenly asked him._

"_What is?"_

"_The moon" she answered. "Do you not like it?"_

"_If I still had the Shukaku inside me, I probably won't" he replied. "But perhaps I might start looking at it the way you do."_

Looking at the moon, it had immediately reminded Gaara of Hinata…because the full moon was very much like her pale eyes. They glow and sparkle whenever she smiles. The night itself reminds him of her. Its dark starry sky was like her long silky hair that cascades beautifully and gracefully down her back.

Hinata…

He really has to end these petty feelings of his. He can't have her…he never will.

* * *

Frustrated would be an understatement to describe what Sakura was feeling. There's a limit to stubbornness. And four certain guys were testing her patience that's rapidly thinning by the second. Standing in front of her with their utmost defiant-looking expression on were Naruto, Neji, Kiba, and Shino—though not much could be seen of his face with his high collar and ever-so-present sunglasses on.

Rubbing her temples and furrowing her brows in show of her aggravation, Sakura shot the four a death glare. Naruto gave her one job. Yesterday, he tried asking her to go to Suna together with a few other medical ninjas. Unfortunately, she got a training program to take care of, which she clearly told him. So, instead, he asked her to suggest someone else to go in her place. There was no other available medic-nin she knew with enough experience to lead a group of amateur medic-nins than Hinata. But what did her blond teammate do? He told her to find someone else but her. And all because he didn't want to be separated from her. She did try her best to find another one who fit for the job. But she could find no one.

And that was what had led to her current situation. When she arrived at the Hokage's office to report to Naruto, she found Shino, Kiba and Neji all present in the room. And as soon as they saw her, their postures had gone rigid as if they were on guard. She immediately knew something was up. Naruto must've told them. But she ignored this and went on to tell Naruto that she couldn't find anyone but Hinata to send for Suna.

"NO!" was the simultaneous shout of the four—well…three, excluding Shino who just stood at a corner—that could've caused Sakura a heart attack.

"No?" she blinked at them. "What do you mean 'no'?"

"There is no way in hell I would allow Hinata to venture out of Konoha's borders again!" Kiba growled out and was followed by Akamaru's bark of agreement.

"Hinata-sama shall never leave Konoha if I could help it" Neji stated with a tone of finality.

Sakura placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow. "If this is about the incident about her kidnap, you guys are so immature." Then, she added, "C'mon! We're ninjas! Danger is our life! It's not something you fuss about! Or have you possibly forgotten that?"

"Of course we haven't, Sakura-chan" Naruto said. "We just want Hinata to be safe. Sunagakure's far away, anything could happen."

She glared at him. "Naruto, the Kazekage's in there. Your trusted friend's in there! It isn't like you to doubt him like that. We all know that is not the reason you have in mind."

"It's close to it" Naruto mumbled. Then, he cleared his throat. "In any case, Hinata's not an option here. Just choose someone from the amateur medic-nins or something."

Sakura was taken aback. "You're not telling me not to accomplish this task seriously, are you?" But before Naruto could speak, she quickly added sternly, "Naruto, there is no one else to choose. Send out Hinata or else there won't be anything left in your office but ruins!" She cracked her knuckles as if preparing to strike the ground any moment.

Naruto audibly gulped. Kiba, Shino and Neji stood unfazed by the obvious threat.

"But, Sakura-chan—"

"Naruto" she warned, her tone ominous.

"She might stay there in weeks" Naruto tried once more.

"It's an A-rank mission. It's a common thing."

When Naruto started opening his mouth again, he got interrupted by the opening of the door. All heads turned to Tsunade who stood with arms crossed at the entrance. She had an eyebrow raised at the people present in the room.

"What's this about not letting Hyuuga Hinata go to Suna I heard from Shizune?" Tsunade asked, mostly to Naruto.

"They don't want Hinata to go because of what happened to her" Sakura explained, narrowing her eyes at the four guys.

Tsunade's eyes landed on the blond Hokage. "You got something to say, bratling?"

"Hinata's not going. Period" Naruto said.

"This is not the time for your love life, Naruto" Tsunade said with a firm voice. "Hyuuga Hinata goes to Suna and that is final."

"But _my_ consent's what's needed for her to go" Naruto said defiantly, pointing his thumb to himself. "I'm the Hokage! I got the final say on this matter!"

Both Tsunade and Sakura cracked their knuckles at the same time indicating that they would destroy the office if Naruto declines once more.

The four guys paled at the sight. Naruto cowered in his seat. "Unless there are two people with demonic strength who are capable in remodeling an office to ruins in less than two seconds" he muttered.

"Your answer?" Tsunade asked with a menacing aura around her.

With a vigorous nod of his head, Naruto didn't even attempt to hide his sigh of relief when Sakura and Tsunade stood at ease.

"Idiot! You're not pretty consistent, are you?!" Kiba yelled at the blond Hokage.

"Like you should talk! You should've seen your face earlier!" Naruto retorted.

"Shut up!"

"Enough!" Tsunade intervened. "Now that the matter has been settled, you three are dismissed."

Neji took a step forward. "Tsunade-sama, I would like to volunteer myself to be Hinata-sama's escort on her trip to Suna."

"Ah, no fair Neji!" Kiba shouted. "I want to go too!"

"And me as well" Shino said.

"Damn, I sure want to come along but can't" Naruto grumbled, resting his head on his palm.

"I would allow only one escort" Tsunade said. "Neji is Hinata's protector. So, he will go."

With that, Tsunade and Sakura left the room.

Before leaving, Kiba and Shino turned to Neji.

"Take care of her" Kiba said. "We don't want something to happen to her again."

After Neji gave them a curt nod, Kiba left with Shino.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when Hinata sat at the Hyuuga gardens and enjoyed its beautiful view—a hobby of hers that she never got tired of. There were assortments of colors from different types of flowers that surrounded her. And their scent lurked around the air that made Hinata sigh in contentment. It was an ethereally beautiful garden that no one in her clan seemed to stop and notice. But she did.

And it was at that moment when Neji spotted her. With silent steps, he approached Hinata and stopped just a few steps behind her.

Hinata didn't have to activate her Byakugan to see who it was. Turning her head to the side, she spoke in her soft and soothing voice. "Can I help you with something, Neji nii-san?"

"Yes. May I accompany you, Hinata-sama?" Neji asked.

She smiled and patted a space on her right indicating for him to sit with her. Neji complied and settled beside her.

All was silent with them observing the horizon until Neji spoke once again, "Is there something bothering you, Hinata-sama?"

Hinata shot him a curious look. "No, there isn't" she replied. "What made you ask, Neji nii-san?"

Neji lightly shook his head. "I noticed that you seemed to be deep in thought lately."

"Oh" Hinata averted her gaze to the ground, forcing a small smile on her lips.

Neji regarded her for a second before asking again, "Do you wish to tell me?" When he saw the hesitation in her eyes when she looked at him again, he decided not to push her. So, he instead shifted his gaze back to the gardens as he said to her, "Hinata-sama, you could tell me anything. I'll listen and help if I can. But if it's against what you want, I won't force you."

Hinata remained silent but flashed him a grateful smile.

"It's just that you appeared to be arguing with yourself…like you're unsure of something. Though, I'm still thankful when you were being you again. I was glad. The Hinata-sama I knew had returned and gone was the Hinata-sama whose emotions were restrained and limited."

Hinata gasped in shock. "Neji nii-san…you knew?" she squeaked.

Neji bowed his head slightly in apology. "Forgive me for keeping it from you. But I figured that I wasn't in any position to tell and point it out to you, Hinata-sama" he said.

Lightly shaking her head, Hinata continued to stare on the flowers. "I suppose I forgot that you could easily tell if something's going on." With a soft giggle, she added as she looked at him in the eyes, "Neji nii-san's a perfect lie detector after all."

Neji gave her a small smile in response. Then, looking at the flowers, he stated more than asked, "You really do love this garden, don't you?"

"Yes" she replied with a smile. Far from them, they both watched in silence as a butterfly gracefully landed on a flower. A few moments later, the butterfly flew away. Another moment later, they spotted a bee landing on a different flower. As it left, Hinata smiled and commented, "They are all so interesting to watch. That is one of the main reasons why I love spending my time here."

Gently touching a lavender plant in front of him, Neji nodded his head sagely. "There's something about these flowers" he suddenly said. "Both butterflies and bees are attracted to them."

"That's because of their nectar" Hinata said.

"Yes, but it's no wonder as well. These flowers…they do deserve the attention they get." Then, he turned to look at Hinata with a soft expression. "Just like how you give them yours, Hinata-sama" he said.

"I feel relaxed just by looking at them. Besides, lavender's my favorite. I'm unable to ignore it" she said.

Neji leaned his head back to look at the blue sky. "I couldn't help but wonder, though. If a flower has the freedom to choose, which of the two would it prefer? Would it be the butterfly…or the bee?" he thought out loud. Shifting his gaze to Hinata, he asked, "What do you think, Hinata-sama?"

She pondered on his question for a second. "I'm…not sure, nii-san" Hinata answered uncertainly. "Both of them feed from the flower. They also take care of it. Wouldn't it be the same either way?"

"That may be so" Neji said, settling his head back down to look at the lavender he touched earlier. "But most probably it would choose the butterfly."

Hinata cocked her head to the side. "Why do you say so?"

"Because the butterfly's more appealing than the bee" Neji answered matter-of-factly.

Hinata let out a soft giggle. "You're basing it on appearance?"

"Technically" Neji replied apathetically.

"Nii-san, most flowers may choose the butterfly over the bee, but not all. Both has its own beauty. Both are unique. Butterflies may be more appealing than bees but, for me, they're the same in terms of appearance and behavior" she said.

"So if you are a flower, Hinata-sama, you would prefer the bee?" he asked with a hint of incredulity.

"Yes, I would" Hinata replied with a nod. By Neji's questioning look, she explained, "Physically, a bee would appear terrifying. But when I give it a thought, I find a bee as a soft-hearted insect that takes care of the flower it feeds from, similar to a butterfly. And though they do the same, for me…the bee's much sweeter and has a greater impact on me." A smile formed on her lips.

Neji closed his eyes and felt the soft breeze brushing against his skin. And once he opened them, he looked at Hinata with respect in his eyes. "You truly are kind-hearted, Hinata-sama. You easily see what others had taken for granted."

She blushed at the compliment. "Y-you praise me too much, Neji nii-san."

He shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not praising you enough."

Hinata offered him a shy smile. "Well…thank you"

Neji gave a curt nod before standing up. After dusting off the grass and dirt off his clothes, he spoke. "I originally came here to tell you that Naruto has a new mission for you. He wishes for your presence in his office" he paused. "Our talk has been…comforting. Thank you for allowing me to accompany you, Hinata-sama, even if it was for a while" he finished with a bow.

"It was nothing, Neji nii-san. I enjoyed as well your company" Hinata said and stood up. "In fact, you are welcome to join me anytime."

"I'll keep that in mind." Then, he fell silent for a second as if he still has something to say. Hinata waited patiently until he spoke. "I could escort you to the Hokage tower if you would like" he suggested.

With a soft laugh, Hinata shook her head. "That won't be necessary, nii-san. Naruto-kun and I are in good terms now" she said. She knew what Neji meant. He was just worried that she would be uncomfortable being with Naruto alone in the office because of what happened between them three years ago, without knowing that they had made up just yesterday.

"Oh…I see" Neji said. "That's good to hear."

"See you, nii-san" Hinata said as she bowed and left.

* * *

When Hinata arrived at the Hokage's office, Naruto immediately went on and told her about the mission assigned to her in Sunagakure.

"It's an A-rank mission. You are to be the lead medic of the group Sakura-chan would arrange for you" Naruto finished, looking gloomy.

"I understand. When do we leave?" Hinata asked.

"First thing tomorrow morning" Naruto replied with a sigh. "Neji's to be your escort."

"Okay." Silence loomed over the place until Hinata decided to ask, "Naruto-kun, what's wrong?"

"Nothing" he replied. "I just…" he paused, reluctant to continue. "I just don't want you to go."

Hinata couldn't help but smile, her cheeks turning pink. "Is it because I was kidnapped?"

"That's just a part of it" he said.

""Then, what's the other reason?"

Naruto stared at her for a moment before looking away with a faint blush on his sun-kissed cheeks. "If you'll be in Suna, I won't be seeing you" he admitted.

It took a while for Hinata to process what he meant before blushing harder. Although they weren't an official couple yet, she was well-aware of Naruto's feelings toward her. He made it clear yesterday.

"You'll be far away from me, Hinata" he said as he looked at her with pleading eyes, pleading her not to go.

"But I have to, right?" she asked. "Because if I don't, Sakura-san and Tsunade-sama would destroy your office."

Naruto just nodded, still feeling gloomy.

Hinata felt compelled to comfort him. "Don't worry, Naruto-kun. I'll be back before you know it" she said with a smile.

Naruto sighed, stood up and approached Hinata. And like yesterday, he held her hands in his. Hinata, in turn, clasped his more securely.

He gave her a sad smile. "Come back soon, then" he said.

"I will."

"Promise?"

Hinata could've laughed at how childish he was sounding. But when he asked her that particular question, she didn't. Something inside her was keeping her from agreeing. So, she decided to change the subject instead. Recalling her conversation with Neji earlier, she said, "Naruto-kun, you remind me of a butterfly."

Naruto's face turned incredulous, forgetting his depression. "A butterfly?" he echoed. Then, he gave her a silly look. "Where had that come from?"

Hinata relayed to Naruto about her discussion with Neji regarding the butterflies, bees and flowers earlier before she went to his office.

After she finished, Naruto asked, "So, why am I compared with a butterfly?"

"People used to hate and avoid you. In result, you worked hard for acknowledgement. Then, gradually, especially after the time you came back from training with one of the legendary sannin, Jiraiya-sama, and after the fight with the Akatsuki leader, you bloomed into a person who people saw as a hero. You became someone who they respected and loved" she explained with a smile.

Naruto chuckled. "From your explanation, don't I sound more like a flower than a butterfly? Since I 'bloomed' like a flower does?"

Hinata lightly shook her head. "You're not as fragile as a flower, Naruto-kun. You're more of being free-spirited, like a butterfly."

"Ah, I see" Naruto said with a nod of his head. "If I'm a butterfly, then Hinata-chan is a flower. But wait…it's not even close."

"E-eh? What do you mean?" Hinata felt hurt at his comment.

"Because a flower is not as beautiful as Hinata-chan!" Naruto grinned. "But if there's a flower as beautiful as you, then I'd be a butterfly who would eternally be attracted to you."

Now _that_ was corny. But Hinata's only reaction was to blush profusely at his remark. Naruto just boldly said that he was attracted to her. Not to mention, he even complimented her about being beautiful! "Th-thank you…Naruto-kun" she quietly said. She never was the best at receiving compliments well.

"Who reminds you of a bee, Hinata?" Naruto asked innocently.

"A bee?" Hinata thought for a moment. An image immediately flashed in her mind. "Well, a bee reminds me of G—" Hinata cut herself in the middle of her sentence before she could say anything more.

"Hinata?" Naruto called out curiously.

She almost said "Gaara". She almost said "Gaara"! Kami…what made her think that?

_"Physically, a bee would appear terrifying. But when I give it a thought, I find a bee as a soft-hearted insect that takes care of the flower it feeds from, similar to a butterfly. And though they do the same, for me…the bee's much sweeter and has a greater impact on me" Hinata had said to Neji during their conversation._

Gaara was like a bee. He may appear to be a cold-hearted person but, in truth, he was one of the sweetest and kindest person Hinata has ever known. When she couldn't sleep back in Suna, he made her a tea that could help her sleep. And when she cried in front of him once, he had comforted her. Though he did it on his own way, it was still effective. When she was kidnapped, he went with Naruto to save her. When she was injured, he immediately tended her wound. And when she said she'll miss him once he left, he hugged her.

Gaara was like a bee—not to mention the gourd on his back makes him really look like one. And he also was as sweet as a honey.

_"There's something about these flowers. Both butterflies and bees are attracted to them" Neji had said. "If a flower has the freedom to choose, which of the two would it prefer? Would it be the butterfly…or the bee?" _

Hinata blushed at the newfound meaning of the question. She knew very well that Neji was referring to their literal meanings. But, she couldn't keep her mind from altering the words on the question.

If she were to choose, who would it be? Would it be Naruto…or Gaara?

_"So if you are a flower, Hinata-sama, you would prefer the bee?"_

_"Yes, I would"_

Hinata mentally shook her head, trying desperately to think straight and calm her pulsating nerves. There weren't any options. Gaara's not romantically involved with her. He wasn't attracted to her like a bee was to a flower. She really has to stop thinking such silly thoughts! There was no way that's ever going to happen! Besides, she doesn't have feelings for Gaara!

"…nata! Hinata!"

Naruto's voice snapped Hinata back to reality. She looked up and found Naruto's worried expression. "Naruto-kun?"

"Are you alright, Hinata? You've been spacing out and I was calling you for a while now" Naruto said.

She was spacing out? Since when? Hinata looked down and saw their still clasped hands. But Naruto was gripping her hands as if holding for dear life. He was worried. She looked up again and fixed her gaze with his. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. I was…deep in thought" she softly said and averted her gaze to the ground.

"What were you thinking about?" Naruto gently asked.

It took Hinata a while to answer, "I…um…I was thinking…how long we'd be staying in Suna." She heard Naruto breathe a sigh of relief and was followed by his chuckle. His grip on her hand had slightly loosened.

"I thought it was something serious" he said. Then, he released his hold on her hand only to place them on her shoulders. Hinata looked at him again. "Don't worry, Hinata! Like you said, you'll be back before you know it! Right?" He gave her a wide grin.

Hinata returned his grin with a smile. At least her attempt on comforting him worked. Now, the optimistic Naruto returned. "Yes" she replied.

* * *

The next day came and, as what was ordered of her, Hinata was up early and prepared. Her medical team had an outstanding sense of punctuality as well, to which she was relieved. Neji was standing beside her at the open gates of Konohagakure saying their farewell to their friends.

"AS SOON AS YOU COME BACK, I'LL CHALLENGE YOU TO ANOTHER DUEL, NEJI!" Rock Lee said in his "nice guy" pose.

"You got it, Lee" Neji said, offering a small smile to his overly-enthusiastic teammate.

"Have a safe trip" Tenten said. Then, she gently pulled Hinata and whispered to her ear, making sure that no one could hear them, "Get along well with Gaara, okay?"

Hinata's cheeks immediately colored. "T-Tenten-san!"

The brunette just giggled at her reaction.

"Don't let that psycho puppet boy touch ya, got that Hinata?" Kiba said and was followed by Akamaru's bark. Shino was quietly standing beside Akamaru.

"Yes, Kiba-kun" Hinata replied with a giggle.

"And if he ever does, send us a letter and Shino and I'll come and strangle him, alright?"

"I will, Kiba-kun" Hinata said. She knew it was Kiba's way of saying that she be careful out there and that they'll miss her. But she didn't point it out. Kiba was prideful and would definitely deny it. Suddenly, Hinata sensed a tinge of familiar chakra on her shoulder. She didn't have to look to see what it was. She shifted her gaze to Shino who looked back at her behind his glasses. She flashed him a warm smile and lightly shook her head. "Thank you, Shino-kun, but it would not be necessary for you to send out your bug to look after me."

"I wanted to make sure" Shino said.

Kiba nodded his head in agreement. "He's right, Hinata. At least let us do this so we'd feel at ease."

Hinata thought of it for a second before giving in. "Okay" she said.

It was at that time that Naruto made his way to the group. He ran up to them and immediately pulled Hinata in his embrace.

Neji went rigid but stood in his famous eight trigrams stance almost immediately. He was glaring dangerously at the blond Hokage who was still hugging Hinata. Tenten and Rock Lee rushed in front of him and tried to calm him down.

"Be safe, Hinata" Naruto whispered on her ear.

"I will, Naruto-kun" Hinata replied, smiling against his chest.

"I'll be here waiting for your return, okay?"

Hinata just nodded her head.

Although reluctant to do so, Naruto slowly loosened his hold on Hinata and released her. A sad expression was on his face as he looked at her. After giving him a reassuring smile, Hinata turned and stood beside Neji, ready to leave.

With loud goodbyes and persistent waves from her suitors, lots of "take care" and "be safe" from their friends, and a _very_ loud "come back soon" from the blond Hokage, Hinata, Neji and the small medical team left Konohagakure on their way to the village that Hinata denied she was excited to go—Sunagakure.

* * *

**A/N: I'm very sorry for the long wait. It took me longer than expected to get my stuff straight. Anyway, how did you like the new cover photo? Haha, it's my first doodle in a while. Also, I'm sorry if I'm dragging the story. Trust me, I don't want it either. But I think ending the chapter here was appropriate and more fitting. To those who are starting to wonder, I'm not planning on exceeding 30 chapters for this story. I'm doing my best to get straight to the point but I don't want the storyline to be too rushed, either. ****Oh, and thank you everyone for the encouragement you kept on giving me even though you don't realize that you're doing it. **

**R&R, 10 reviews.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: I'm trying a different writing style, so **_**Italicized**_** sentences are thoughts.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 20**

"I sincerely extend my gratitude to all of you for giving me your time by coming all the way here" Gaara started as soon as he got up from his seat behind his wide desk as a sign of acknowledgement to all the lead medics present in his office, each and everyone from different villages.

Pale lavender eyes watched intently as the Kazekage walked around his table only to stop in front of it.

Was she just imagining it?

Gaara remained silent as he looked at each of the medic's faces, familiarizing each one since he would be working with them from this day forward. They were standing upright and silent as they waited patiently for him to speak. Gaara took his time looking at them, starting from the first medic to his left then to the next, not taking more than three seconds before moving on.

Hinata waited, rather impatiently, for Gaara to look at her. But when all he did was skip her like she wasn't even there, Hinata confirmed something to herself.

She wasn't imagining. There was really something wrong with Gaara.

Earlier that day, after she had finished unpacking her things upon her arrival in Suna, she was informed by a Sand ninja that the Kazekage requests for a meeting with all the lead medics in his office. Hinata went straight to Gaara's office as soon as she finished cleaning herself up of all the dirt that stuck on her skin during her travel with Neji and her medical team. When she arrived, she saw several people—each with different symbols on their forehead protectors—gathered on the corridor just outside the Kazekage's office. They were having a quiet but friendly conversation with each other that made Hinata comfortable.

It didn't take long before the door to the office opened and everyone was invited in. As Hinata stepped inside the room, she immediately spotted Gaara seated behind his desk. His head was bent down as he was writing something. Hinata unconsciously smiled. It was so like Gaara to continue doing his paperwork despite the presence of guests. _It wouldn't be long now before he would stop what he's doing and look up,_ Hinata thought.

And she was right.

Gaara did look up. And upon doing so, their eyes met. Hinata could've sworn time just stopped. She was looking at those cool green eyes of his that held so much mystery. Those eyes that she used to look at every night in a certain waterfall place in Konohagakure. Those interesting eyes that held so much emotion that she had learned to read. Those same eyes that she had never seen for more than a week. Nobody knew how long they stared at each other. But when Hinata greeted Gaara with a smile, that's when he looked away as if he saw nothing.

Hinata hadn't really mind. However, when she noticed that Gaara acknowledged everyone else with a curt nod, she felt a pang of pain and wondered what was going on. She wondered if she had done something wrong to make him ignore her. But when she recalled their last encounter back in Konoha, she knew that wasn't the case.

_Why is Gaara ignoring me?_ Hinata thought to herself as she looked at the said red-head who opened his mouth once again to speak.

"As you all know, Sunagakure is in dire need of medic-nins due to unforeseen events that had occurred a few days ago. Several citizens have been injured and are in need of medical attention as we speak. And because there are a huge number of patients, Suna's medics are having a hard time attending to every single one" Gaara paused. "This is the very reason why I have requested assistance from your villages. And as Kazekage of this village, I am counting on you."

A few heads nodded in response.

Gaara then proceeded to instruct them on what to do. "At the end of each week, you are to hand me your reports regarding the progress of your assigned stations. And each of you would personally explain it to me in detail. There may be things that I wish to know regarding your report and I could ask you immediately. Are there any questions?" There was none, so he continued, "I hope that we would all get along well. Professionally, at the least."

* * *

"So it was really Hinata-chan!" Kankuro exclaimed with a chuckle as he ran towards the heiress. "I thought I saw a familiar face."

"It's nice to see you, Kankuro-san" Hinata greeted with a bow. The meeting had just finished and she was on her way to see Neji, since they agreed to eat lunch together.

"No need to be so polite" Kankuro gave her an awkward grin. "Does Temari know you're here?"

"No, I think not" Hinata replied.

Kankuro shrugged. "Oh well, doesn't matter. She'll find out soon enough" he said as he draped an arm around Hinata's shoulder. "So, how do you like your stay here in the Kazekage tower? Are you comfortable?"

"Yes, I am. Thank you for your concern" Hinata said. "I was grateful when we were told we would be staying here. We didn't have to rent a room anymore." She gently removed Kankuro's arm off her shoulder. He didn't seem to mind.

"It was Gaara's idea. He said it was to thank the medics who came" he said. "This place is so big anyway. It's good to have a lot of people here. Even for a meantime." He looked at the wide open space in the hall they were standing in, each four corners with a tall archway with intricate designs lining it. He turned to face Hinata and noticed the bothered look on her face. "What's up?" he asked.

Hinata looked up at him and faked a smile. "Nothing."

Kankuro eyed her for a second before shrugging the matter off. "If you say so," he mumbled. He was quick to change the subject. "You know, it wasn't necessary for you guys to go here. After all, we have the entire Naoshi clan to heal the patients."

She certainly hasn't thought of that. "Then why did—"

"Gaara didn't want them to. He said he didn't want to decrease their population" he chuckled. "I think he was exaggerating. I mean, c'mon, all we need is a drop of their blood to heal _any_ wound. I never thought my brother could sometimes be so dramatic."

Hinata couldn't help but giggle at his remark. "I see."

"The Naoshi even wanted to help so badly and were pretty excited at the thought of helping the Kazekage and the village. But after they knew they were forbidden to do so, they begged him." He grinned at Hinata's astonished expression. "In the end, Gaara allowed them. But they could only heal those who are badly wounded. And let me tell you, there aren't a lot. They were still happy to help, though." No sooner than he said it, the sound of rushing footsteps reverberated outside the hall. A figure came into their line of vision, stopping at one of the archways to stare at them.

It was Temari.

"Out of my way!" she shouted as she ran towards them, pushing Kankuro harshly to the side as she placed herself beside Hinata. "Why didn't you tell me you were here, Hinata?" she asked the heiress with a small pout on her face.

Hinata flashed an apologetic look. "Gaara called for a meeting as soon as we arrived."

Temari nodded in understanding. "I never expected Naruto would send you" she said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, we thought the pink-haired girl would come instead" Kankuro chimed in, dusting himself as he stood up.

Hinata smiled. "Sakura-san had matters to take care of. I was the only one able to go" she explained. The two siblings nodded in unison.

Temari chortled. "And? How did Gaara react?" she asked eagerly, too excited to notice Hinata stiffen at her question. Kankuro, on the other hand, stared at her, waiting for her to answer.

"I was not able to determine" Hinata managed to say, her smile was obviously strained.

"Really?" Temari blinked, her eagerness fading away. "You didn't notice anything strange regarding his behavior?" _Like blushing like a school boy._ She watched Hinata's eyes widen and avert to the ground.

"N-no" she whispered. _I can't bother Temari-san about my own problems. I have to deal with it myself._

* * *

Neji went back to Konohagakure after three days, although reluctantly. It took a lot of convincing from Hinata for him to finally believe that she would be able to take care of herself.

She was hard at work and trying not to be a bother to everyone. However, whenever she passes by Gaara's office, the door would suddenly open. And when she expects it would Gaara to come out, for each heart-stopping moment, she would be disappointed and her heart filled with jealousy because it would always be Arima of the Naoshi clan. Whatever is she doing there? And smiling, nonetheless? She need not use her Byakugan to see all those hearts and that pink fluffy aura hovering about her.

Wait. Why is _she_ jealous? She should not be jealous, right? It's not like she's in love with Gaara, right? These questions never left her mind even until when Kankuro approached her and asked for a favor. With half a mind, she agreed to give her assistance until reality struck her.

It turned out she promised to pose as Kankuro's lover.

It was already too late to back out. And she was loath to break her promise when her ninja way was to never go back on her words, but most especially because Kankuro was so happy and relieved.

When Kankuro went—more like he ran— to her, he was already at his wits end. While stumbling on his words, he explained to her that an utterly hideous fat monster named Ifu approached him earlier and won't leave him alone.

"I wasn't hitting on her!" Kankuro practically yelled, sounding hysterical with a crazy expression on his face. "I was hitting on a busty blonde babe when the gourd woman came out of nowhere and jumped on me!"

Gourd woman, because according to Kankuro, her body shape looked horrifyingly similar to Gaara's gourd. Hinata guessed when Kankuro said he was "jumped on", he meant "to have his painted face shoved down on the hot sand and he was forced to appreciate its texture and taste".

"I thought I would never see the daylight again" he shuddered at the memory. "I barely managed to escape her. But when I did, I immediately went here. She wouldn't even let me go for a second! I tried _everything_ possible to tell her I wasn't interested, but it just won't work!" he paused and grinned evilly, a wild look gleamed behind his eyes despite his obvious weariness. It scared Hinata. "And then it hit me." Grabbing Hinata by the shoulders, he looked straight into her eyes. "I told her I already had someone I like. Sure it worked, but only for a while. She told me to prove it by bringing that certain someone for her to meet"—he gulped—"later this afternoon."

Hinata stared at him with wide eyes. "But Kankuro-san, she'll know I'm just a guest here. She'll know immediately just by looking at my eyes."

That didn't stop Kankuro's grin from widening. "That's the thing. She wouldn't know" he chuckled. "Because you'll have a complete makeover."

* * *

In her entire life, Hinata had never experienced such great many hours spent on her looks alone. She had to try out one type of clothing to another until finally Kankuro decided the one he would like for her to wear. It was a two-piece consisting of a hooded bra-like top and belted short shorts made from leather. And she stood out like a hot rod, the outfit emphasizing the fullness of her chest. But Hinata protested. And so, Kankuro settled for less…in his opinion. She didn't know what was worse. It also seemed like every powder on the vanity table was applied on her face. It's a wonder her face did not fall off right now. After they thanked the store keeper, they went their way.

Kankuro was proud of his masterpiece and Hinata was astonished about his extensive knowledge about women's trade. In his glee, Kankuro dragged Hinata to Gaara's office, wanting to show off his cute and adorable "girlfriend". Hinata sighed, resigned to her fate. Oh well, it's reporting day after all. There's not much difference in reporting earlier than the usual. She took out her scroll from her pouch and would have read it but Kankuro was holding her other hand. She'll just have to recite it from memory to Gaara then.

Her eyes turned sad. It did not matter whether she recites it or not. Gaara would still be indifferent to her, the same as he had done for the past few weeks when she reported to him.

Kankuro threw open the door to the office, exclaiming as loud as he can his entrance and successfully gained everyone's attention. Everyone being Temari and Gaara. Hesitantly, Hinata stepped in the room and caught sight of the two staring blankly at her direction. It seemed no one realized it was her. That's good for Kankuro's plan.

"Gaara" then "Temari" Kankuro began and indicated Hinata. "Meet my girlfriend, Hina! Isn't she beautiful?" While saying the last part, he was pushing Hinata to the two of them.

Still no one recognized it was her. Temari had her mouth on the floor while Gaara just continued to stare.

"Girlfriend?! Since when?" Temari finally caught herself and found her voice.

"Since this morning" the puppeteer replied with a huge grin.

"Who's this? I've never seen her before" Gaara said in his usual monotone as he looked Hinata up and down.

In her violet sleeveless short kimono with black bold strips lining the edges, she felt more naked than the day she was born under the sharp scrutiny, despite the fishnet shirt showing beneath the deep V of her kimono's collar and fingerless gloves of the same material. The sides of her kimono's skirt had slits no less than three inches, its hem reaching only to her mid-thigh revealing her thigh-high black stockings and black standard ninja sandals.

Gaara's eyes landed on her waist. "She's a shinobi of this village" he remarked with a hint of surprise in his voice, referring to the dark violet obi wrapped around her waist that was securely tied with Suna's forehead protector.

Her eyes were covered by ocean blue contact lenses, her long indigo hair curled into graceful waves and her fringe, together with a small portion of her hair at the sides, was temporarily dyed with light yellow, contrasting her own hair's natural color. A dark violet beanie completed the whole attire. Gaara would certainly not be able to tell it was her. Unless, of course, Kankuro would tell them himself.

"Yeah, she's been living here in Suna for a few months now" Kankuro said with a smug look etched on his face. "In fact, I've been visiting Hinata-chan lots of times ever since…" his words died in his mouth and the smugness wiped off his face as soon as he realized his mistake.

Temari's face grew incredulous and her jaw dropped once again. "H-Hinata?! Hina…Hinata?!"

Gaara was no longer just staring. His eyes widened and his mouth, to his credit, only opened a bit. He looked over at Hinata once more. And as if seeing her for the first time in that outfit, his breath caught in his throat and he instantly froze.

"Is she really Hinata?" Temari had a hand to her mouth as she scooted closer to Hinata who was blushing harder by the second.

"U-um…Temari-san" Hinata began uncertainly.

Temari's face gradually brightened. "Kami! It really is!" she exclaimed gleefully. "Oh my, you're so beautiful Hinata! I definitely haven't noticed it was you!"

"Damn…if only my tongue hadn't slipped." Kankuro grumbled, and then shrugged. "Oh well, at least you admitted you hadn't recognized her."

Temari glared at him. "Kankuro, what the hell is the meaning of this? You and Hinata are dating?!" This caught Gaara's attention as his head snapped up to look at his brother.

Kankuro lightly shook his head. "Sadly, not for real." His eyes went to Hinata and she could make out the mischievous glint present in them. "Though I certainly wouldn't mind if it would be."

Temari waved a hand to him in a dismissive manner. "Stop dreaming" she said with apathy. "What happened? Wait. Do explain later. For now..." she turned her attention to Hinata, her expression that of excitement. "You look so _hot_, Hinata! My idiot brother sure does know how to transform you completely!"

Hinata squirmed from her spot, embarrassed enough by her outfit. "Th-thanks…I guess" she smiled, though awkwardly.

Kankuro stepped in between the two kunoichi. He reached for Hinata's hand and took hold of it. "We look good together, too" he confidently said.

Temari was about to whack her brother away from Hinata when they heard the sound of hands slamming on a wooden material. Three heads turned and saw a blank-faced Gaara. He had both his palms flat on the table before he leisurely moved around it with arms crossed over his chest. He stopped to stand in front of Kankuro and Hinata who had the same look of confusion on their faces. They watched his eyes lower down to look at something. Suddenly, sand flowed out of Gaara's gourd, which was leaning against the wall behind his table, and molded like clay into a giant hand.

And before anyone could open their mouth to question about it, the giant sand hand swiftly swept down in a vertical position, straight between Kankuro and Hinata, and separated their clasped hands.

The sand hand immediately fell apart after that and returned back to the gourd. For a split-second, it had seemed Gaara went rigid. But he went back to his seat behind his desk without a word, like none of that happened at all.

The silence stretched out inside the room.

Temari was the first to recover from her shock. She wickedly smirked at her red-head brother. _Oh Gaara…you and your jealous fits._ "So!" she started, drawing their attention to her. She'll do him a favor and change the topic. "Hinata, you really shouldn't be shy. You're gorgeous, so chin up! Men all over Suna would absolutely stop and stare at you." But, sometimes, she just couldn't help but tease her little brother. "Right, Gaara?" She turned her head just in time to see Gaara enclosing himself with his sand that was formed into a huge sphere. "Wai—Gaara?!" Temari was alarmed.

"Bro, you alright?" Kankuro was no different.

No answer was heard from Gaara.

Hinata started to worry and her heart hammered in her chest. She was about to open her mouth to ask what was going on when Gaara's voice sounded from inside his sand shell.

"I'm…fine" he said.

"Why? What's with all these sand? What's going on?" Kankuro took a tentative stepped towards the sphere.

"I…maybe…can explain…perhaps? Though…" Gaara paused. "Though it would be best to escort Hyuuga-san out of the room before anything."

The two other siblings turned to Hinata who nodded her head after a while. Temari was the one who led her out of the office. After the door closed behind them, Kankuro whirled his head back to Gaara. He watched the sand gradually slide down to the ground and return to Gaara's gourd. As soon as Gaara was visible, Kankuro saw with concern his brother had his eyes downcast. A hand was covering his nose. And…was that blood dripping down? Gaara's blood? For a split second of losing his control, the sand fell off his face revealing a red-faced Gaara.

For a moment, Kankuro stood shell-shocked. He had not expected that. "Gaara…" was all he could mutter pass a throat that curiously clogged up with emotion.

Gaara started talking and there was no stopping the words pouring out from him. "I'm unable to understand it myself, Kankuro. I mean, why Hinata? One moment, I was looking at her and the next thing I knew, my heart won't stop beating fast, blood quickly rushed to my face, and I lost control of everything. Blood just gushed out of my nose. Something's wrong with me and I had to set up my defense only to find out no physical damage was done. It turned out it was my emotions. I felt all these feelings in me that I'm incapable of comprehending. Perhaps it was of confusion, happiness, surprise, or wonder that I…I absolutely have no idea what exactly. Why is there blood flowing out of my nose? Did someone try to poison me? Did some—" The sound of Kankuro's laughter reverberated inside the office, stopping Gaara from going on with his frantic explanation. He glared at his brother, vaguely wondering if he has finally gone mad. "Would you mind sharing to me the reason why you're acting so delighted with my suffering?"

Kankuro gasped for air but his laughter made it difficult to do so. He was laughing so hard that he had a hand slapping Gaara's table, rolling off some of the scrolls to the ground. "Oh, brother!" Kankuro managed to say in between laughs. "You really don't…have any idea!" he wheezed. "Did someone try to poison you?! _You_?!" he laughed harder.

"I don't see your point" Gaara glowered.

"Of course you don't!" Kankuro huffed and wiped the tears that formed at the corner of his eyes as he sobered. "What I meant to say is it is understandable why you don't get it." He lopsidedly smiled. "Bro, you're hooked." On Gaara's confused look, he quickly explained, "It means you're completely in love with Hinata."

Gaara just blankly stared at him. "So?"

Kankuro was taken aback. "So…what?" His brows slightly furrowed.

"I am aware I'm in love with her. Telling me that did not help in answering my questions."

Kankuro blinked. "Oh, so you knew? What made you so confused, then?" He went silent, slowly understanding what Gaara wanted to know. Then, he grinned while lightly shaking his head. "Gaara, it's natural for you to feel that way. No one was trying to"—he stifled a laugh—"poison you. You simply got overexcited in seeing Hinata in that get-up."

Still confused, Gaara just accepted it. Anyways, who can say the logical answer when it comes to human emotions?

* * *

"It's alright to leave me here, Temari-san. You may go back to the office. I know you're worried" Hinata said as she stopped Temari from taking a step outside the Kazekage tower.

Temari silently looked at her before her face broke gently into smile. "Thanks, Hinata" she said and began to walk back to Gaara's office before Hinata's voice stopped her again.

"Wait, before you go," Hinata reached to her pouch, took out a scroll and handed it to Temari. "Please give this to Gaara for me. I was planning to report but I eventually forgot."

"I will" Temari said and went her way.

Hinata watched her go, a hand unconsciously clutching her heart. Once Temari was out of sight, she walked out of the tower and into the bustling streets of Suna. Her appearance instantly caught the attention of most people, but she was to engrossed in her thoughts to notice. She still got a few minutes before the designated time to meet the gourd woman, Ifu. Right now, something was bothering her. Something that Gaara had said earlier back in his office.

She was not sure of what pained her more, whether it was when she was ignored by Gaara or she was kept from knowing what was happening or the fact that she was only called by her family name. And as much as Hinata didn't want to believe it, he _had_ really called her "Hyuuga-san" as if she was a total stranger. Replaying what he had said in her mind and how numbly he had called her name, Hinata instinctively tightened her grip on her clothed chest. The throbbing of her heart was becoming frequent, she noted to herself. She wondered why—more like she denied the reason why. She had wanted to end her constant speculating on herself on why Gaara had been ignoring her. And she had tried bringing it up in front of Gaara during her reports to him, but he had simply avoided the topic. Gaara had only talked to her of subjects concerning professional matters and anything beyond that he remained silent.

Hinata exhaled a ragged breath. What if they'd never talk to each other again? Just the thought sent a bolt of pain through her heart that she had to hold back the tears that began to form in her eyes. She was at a loss of what to do.

* * *

There was no doubt that Kankuro had a gleeful look plastered on his face. He was too happy over the success of his plan. Just a few minutes ago, Hinata and he had managed to convince Ifu that they were a couple. And just like Kankuro's description of her, Ifu's shape really did look similar to Gaara's gourd. But she wasn't as hideous as what Kankuro made Hinata believe. Ifu was just a chubby woman who had red plump lips and huge brown eyes. Her chestnut-colored hair was neatly coiffed behind her head and fastened with an elaborate hairclip.

The look on Ifu's face upon seeing Kankuro walking with a woman she didn't know was still clear on Hinata's mind. Ifu stood frozen in front of her house agape while she watched Kankuro and Hinata, hand in hand, slowly make their way towards her.

"I…I thought you were bluffing" Ifu had said to Kankuro who flashed an awkward smile.

"Ifu-san, this is my girlfriend, Hina" he introduced and Hinata bowed in greeting.

Ifu studied her for a second before her brows furrowed together. "She's…" she started, her voice cracked. "She's wonderful, Kankuro-san. I wouldn't be surprised how she managed to capture your heart." Hinata could hear the melancholy in her voice.

Kankuro grinned broadly. "Yeah. She's incredible." He gently squeezed Hinata's hand, hinting her to smile. And when she did, Ifu bolted back to her house in tears.

"This calls for a celebration!" Kankuro exclaimed, snapping Hinata back to reality. "What do you say, Hinata-chan? It's my treat! Think of it as my thanks for your cooperation."

"I'm not against it or anything but…" Hinata looked down at her attire Kankuro had spent his own money on. Everything she was wearing, minus the forehead protector on her waist, was already hers according to him. But there won't be second time with her in that outfit. Hinata would make sure of that.

"No worries, you look stunning in those." Kankuro said and smiled. "I'm still amazed by your performance earlier, Hinata-chan. You kept your head held high" he chuckled.

"I just didn't want your efforts to be wasted, Kankuro-san."

"Really? You're so considerate. Thanks" he said. "Well, I'll go and invite Temari. I wanted the four of us, including Gaara, to celebrate my freedom. So, could you please do me a favor and call over Gaara for me? We'll meet here afterwards. Thanks a bunch!"

Hinata would've had protested. But before she could say anything, Kankuro was already gone.

* * *

Hinata found Gaara at the rooftop of the Kazekage tower, deep in thought. He did not seem to mind her presence yet so she took the liberty to observe his profile. His hair shone brighter against the afternoon sun and Hinata felt a sudden urge to run her hands through his hair. It was a short while later when Hinata realized Gaara was looking back at her. She blushed, gulped and steadily went to him, which surprised her considering how shaky her nerves felt.

"G-Gaara, Kankuro-san wanted me to ask you to come with us to celebrate the…um…success…of his plan" Hinata softly said.

It was a moment before Gaara nodded, his jade eyes glued to the view of his village in front of him.

Hinata waited for him to say something. _Please talk to me._ But nothing more came, not even a single glance to her way. _What happened to him? Why is he acting like this?_ "Would you come?" she tried once more.

Nod.

She bit her lip.

Silence hung in the air around them.

_What happened with Gaara? Why is he doing this? Are we not friends? Why won't he say anything? Does he hate me now? _

_Or is it because he already has Arima-san?_

"Gaara, I—"

"Where would the celebration be?" Gaara cut in.

It took Hinata a second to process his question. "Kankuro-san hasn't mentioned anything" she replied. "Gaara, why—"

"Tell him I'll just follow."

"I will, but Gaara—"

"You may go ahead of me."

"For one minute, will you just listen to me?!" Hinata cried out.

Gaara's head snapped around and he stared at her. She had already removed the contact lenses. Hinata looked back with eyes glinting with mixed emotions—anger, sadness, worry, pain. He had clearly hurt her. And it was no doubt that it was because of what he had done that made her like this. Over the past few weeks, he had successfully ignored her, somehow avoided her.

It was a surprise enough to him that it wasn't Haruno Sakura who came to Suna. He had not calculated on the possibility that it might be another person who would be sent over, thus started his own mental torture with himself. He had missed Hinata, that's an undeniable fact. But he can't let her know. Not ever. Not when he had forbidden himself in letting her be aware of his feelings. He had told himself countless of times that doing so would only be futile.

Gaara noticed Hinata took a step forward. And, at that moment, he did the only thing he could do. He leapt off the rooftop and ran away from her. He could hear her shout his name. But he didn't look back._ I may be a coward for not facing her, but I didn't want to answer any of her questions._

Hinata gave chase. _Why? Why is he running away me?_ "Gaara!"

This time, Gaara glanced back. But after he did, he picked up his pace._ Because if she asks, I'm not certain of what I'll say. I'm afraid. Afraid that she might find out of my feelings for her._

Hinata did the same, jumping from a rooftop to another. "Gaara! Why are you avoiding me?"

He did not answer._ I didn't want to disrupt whatever relationship she has with Naruto. It's for her own good._

"Gaara! Please!" _Please talk to me._

"Leave me be" his words came out numbly.

"No! Not until you tell me what's going on!"

Gaara jumped down from the rooftop he was in and landed on the streets of Suna. People's heads whirled around and looked at him, wide-eyed, wondering what their Kazekage was doing there. Gaara quickly bolted off. Not a second later, Hinata landed as well and ran after him. Their chase caught the attention of several people around. But none of that mattered.

They arrived at a clearing, somewhere in Suna that was barely hidden by houses and buildings. There was no one around and, finally, Gaara stopped running. But as he turned around to face Hinata, who was just about to land a few feet away from him, he swiftly summoned his sand and stopped her from doing so by attempting to lunge at her. Hinata back-flipped and landed a few meters away, panting. They stood there, looking at each other. Hinata looked with hurt in her eyes while Gaara managed to remain impassive.

"Please" Hinata said after a while. "Please tell me."

She was begging him. But he doesn't have any excuses he could think of that won't give away his feelings. "I…I have to avoid you while I still can" Gaara muttered so softly that only he could hear.

Hinata could feel tears brimming over her eyes and she had to hold it down from pouring out. _I've got no other choice._ "Gaara…if you won't tell me," she started, looking at him with determined eyes. "I'll force it out of you if I have to!" She dashed towards him, with every intention to combat. She threw a punch, but Gaara's sand blocked it. She went around him and threw a kick, but the same thing happened. She was fast, faster than before, but the sand was quicker.

Gaara easily blocked all her blows, even those chakra-engulfed ones. She knew it was useless. They both knew it was useless. She can't win against him. But she still went on despite everything. And he was doing nothing but block everything she threw at him. She was panting hard but she still hadn't stopped. Gaara was looking at her trying so hard and just the sight of it made his heart clench.

Hinata threw a sharp kick and a wall of sand rose to block it. But before it could do anything, the wall of sand abruptly dropped. Surprised, Hinata whirled around, barely stopping herself from kicking Gaara. But as soon as her two feet hit the ground, she immediately lunge herself at him, knocking the both of them to the ground.

Gaara stared up at her, his eyes widened a fraction. Hinata had him pinned down to the ground. Her hands held his wrists to either side of him and her legs planted on each side of his thighs. A drop of tear landed on his cheek.

Hinata was crying.

"Why?" she sniffed. "Why are you not talking to me?"

Her voice cracked and tears continuously poured out of her pale lavender eyes. Gaara was rendered speechless. She was crying in front of him again. And it was _still_ because of him. Why is it that it's always him that's causing her tears?

He wanted her to be happy. This wasn't it.

This was not what he had in mind. _All I ever wanted was for her to smile, to be happy with whoever she wants to be with._

"Gaara, do you hate me now?"

Her question sent jolts of pain through him. "No…" he said as he looked at her with concern. "I don't hate you, Hinata." _He could never hate her. Even if he wanted to._

"Then, why?" Her grip on his wrists loosened.

_I thought…I thought ignoring her would make these feelings go away. _Gaara gently tugged on his right wrist, releasing Hinata's hold on him. _All along I wasn't doing anything for her. I was doing it all…for myself. _He reached up and cupped her face tenderly. He had tried _so_ hard in making his feelings go away. He had tried to stop thinking about Hinata.

But, clearly, his heart won't listen to him.

Hinata cried her eyes out. And, as if on instinct, Gaara pulled her to him and hugged her tight. Hinata clung to him as she wept, holding for dear life. "I'm sorry" he whispered softly to her. "I don't hate you. I was ignoring you because…I didn't want you to know that I…" _I love you._ "Hinata, I—"

"What are you doing?"

Both Hinata and Gaara's head snapped to the side and saw a familiar figure standing before them staring back. His cerulean eyes were wide and his mouth slightly parted with shock and disbelief.

Gaara almost mirrored the look on his face. "Naruto?"

* * *

**A/N: What's Naruto doing in Suna? You'll find out next chapter. **

**I've been counting and I know it's been two months ever since I've updated and I am more than sorry to have kept you waiting. You know the usual excuses: school, assignments, projects, etc. But do believe me, it was exactly those that made me unable to update. I know you're all disappointed with me and I'm really sorry. But while I was doing my projects, I worried about this story too. That's why whenever I could, I worked on this chapter. And even now, I still haven't gotten a vacation yet for the semester. It's already May and, sadly, the next term would start in June. And I'm frustrated about the fact that we get to have such a short break only. Well, it's better than getting nothing anyway.**

**Moving on, I just want to thank my dear sister for collaborating with me in this chapter. Thanks, sis. So, what did you think? I made it longer to compensate for my tardiness. **

**R&R, 10 Reviews.**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: My classes are finally done! YAY! I'd like to thank everyone for welcoming me back. There were those who even thought I dropped the story. I'm not surprised you thought of that. And if ever I was going to drop this, I would have told you. I don't want you to be expecting, waiting or any of that sort. But let me just assure you that I would **_**never**_** drop this. Especially since this story's almost ending.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 21**

Kankuro tapped his foot impatiently. He and Temari had already waited for who-knows-how long at the said meeting place. "Where the hell are they? What's taking them so long?"

"I ought to remind you that it was _your_ idea to let them reconcile" Temari pointed smugly. "They are probably somewhere being friendly with each other. You said Gaara's been avoiding Hinata, right?"

"Yeah, though he's bad at it" Kankuro sniggered. It was silent for a second until he screamed while pulling his hairs out. "Argh! I can't stand this! Making up doesn't take this damn long!"

Temari sighed at her brother's antics. "You're forgetting it's Gaara we're talking about. Our little brother can be stubborn at times."

Their conversation was cut short when a Sand jounin came rushing to them. "Temari-sama, Kankuro-sama, I've been looking all over for you."

"What is it?" Temari spoke.

"The Hokage's here along with a few Konoha escorts."

The two sibling's eyes simultaneously widened.

"Naruto? What's he doing here?" Kankuro asked.

"According to one of the Hokage's escorts, he's on a break."

"Where is the Kazekage?" Temari sounded annoyed.

"He is not in his office. The other jounin are still searching to inform him of the Hokage's arrival."

Temari turned to Kankuro. "That shrimp…he should've at least sent us a word."

Kankuro nodded in agreement. "It seems that they are having a hard time finding Gaara. I suggest we go and look for him, too."

They went and searched together. And after a while of looking for their red-headed brother, Temari finally spotted Gaara from a far distance and quickly grabbed Kankuro's collar to turn him around. Pointing at the sight before them, Temari muttered so low that Kankuro had to strain his ears to hear, "Is that Hinata on top of Gaara?"

Kankuro flushed and gulped. "Wow, Temari…that sounded so inappropriate in more ways than one."

She stared at the two younger teens for a while before turning to Kankuro, sighing. "I'd hate to break their intima…er…sweet moment but we have to inform Gaara that Naruto—"

"Is here" Kankuro finished, nodding apathetically at Gaara and Hinata's direction.

Temari's head abruptly snapped back to find Naruto standing still near Hinata and Gaara with a devastated expression on. Color immediately left her face. "Crap…"

* * *

A few days ago in Konoha, Tsunade noticed how depressed Naruto was. He kept sighing and had a look of longing on his face. So, she decided to kick him out of Konoha and told him to never return until he has finally seen Hinata. She was giving him a break and while he's away, she assured him that she'll be Hokage for a while and take care of everything. After all, a month had passed and Naruto was already relieved of his punishment he got after the incident of Hinata's capture. Excited about getting to see Hinata again, Naruto made haste and travelled to Suna along with Kiba, Shino, Neji and Shikamaru as his escorts. And upon arriving at their destination, Naruto did not waste time and asked the first Sand ninja he saw of Hinata's whereabouts.

Of course, the ninja did not know. It was then that Shino stepped in and offered to lead Naruto to Hinata. Extending his hand to reveal a bug, Shino explained that he had placed it on Hinata and had just returned to him. All the while, Naruto was bouncing on his feet. Before Shino could finish saying "that way", pointing to a direction, Naruto was already running on the way.

The first thing Naruto saw was Gaara's red head. Although it registered to him that Gaara was lying on his back and his gourd was a little ways away from him, it seemed not to matter at all since he was not in immediate danger anyways. And Gaara is always covered in sand.

He would have liked to ask Gaara right away of Hinata's whereabouts but decided to greet him first. He realized as well that on top of Gaara was a very beautiful girl wearing quite a body-fitting outfit. His smile widened and, laughter tinting his voice, said, "What are you doing?"

A pair of green and pale purple eyes he knew so well, turned to his way. All his mirth disappeared. The past month's worries and built up fears, at the back of his mind, came flowing out. His heart throbbed and hammered harshly in his chest. Looking at Hinata, he noticed the wetness on her eyes and falling tears on her cheeks.

Something snapped inside him.

The next thing Gaara knew, he was high up in the air. He was thankful he was able to push Hinata out of the way before Naruto turned on him.

He found his balance and faced his best friend.

Naruto summoned four kage bunshins. Two stayed with Naruto and prepared a rasenshuriken. The two charged towards Gaara. Each had their hands raised to throw a punch only to be hindered by a thick wall of sand. Thick sand poles came out from it, knocked the two clones to the ground, and both disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Gaara heard movement to his side and he whirled his head just in time to dodge a kick to his left. Turning around, he saw Naruto throwing several kunai and shuriken. He quickly raised another wall of sand to block.

Hinata begged them to stop, but neither seemed to have heard as they continued their assault on each other.

Out of the corner of his eye, Gaara saw a rasenshuriken speeding towards to him. Too fast. He barely had the time to cover himself with his shield of sand.

Kiba, Shino, Neji and Shikamaru, who had just arrived at the scene accompanied by a few Sand shinobi, had their mouths wide open as they witnessed the battle of the two village leaders. No one dared to intervene.

Neither of the two Kages gave in nor even showed any sign of fatigue. Naruto brought his hands together, forming the seal to summon another barrage of kage bunshins, lunging straight at Gaara. They threw different consecutive attacks. Countless shurikens and kunais flew to the air, followed by a series of kicks, punches and a good number of rasengan. Every single one was either blocked or dodged by Gaara, although barely, countering only by knocking out as many clones as he can with his sand as he went.

A clone, with a rasengan in hand, attacked from behind and Gaara jumped out of his reach. Suspended in the air, another clone was quick to his side and Gaara flipped forward, landing back to the ground.

"Stop!" Hinata shouted to them but her pleas only fell on deaf ears. She watched, wide-eyed, as six Naruto clones, poised to attack, leapt to Gaara, surrounding him on all sides. Gaara was able to block them. But Hinata stared in horror when he failed to notice the attack coming from the side. Too late. As soon as Gaara turned his head, Naruto's fist planted firmly on his cheek. He was tossed away several feet from Naruto himself. A loud thud resounded on the silent field when his back landed hard on the ground. The sand armor covering his face cracked and the part where his cheek was punched fell apart.

Naruto moved and stalked to Gaara, stopping only when he reached his side.

"Naruto-kun…stop" Hinata tried to tell him but her voice came out in a hushed tone.

Gaara tried to stand but only succeeded in sitting up.

Naruto's blue eyes, which flashed with anger, bore into Gaara's jade ones. The hand at his side curled to a fist. He raised it, poised to attack and brought it down aiming for Gaara's upraised face.

"Naruto-kun, please stop it!" Hinata was suddenly there, standing in between, and blocking Gaara from Naruto.

Seeing her face effectively stopped Naruto's movement. Everything was silent except for their harsh breathing, Hinata from the exertion of sprinting to Gaara's rescue. Without a word, Naruto straightened, turned, and slowly left.

The ninjas, who were spectators of the fight, and who currently blocked the Hokage's path ran to the sides when they saw his face. His lips drawn in a thin straight line, his eyes glazed with unshed tears perhaps of sadness and hurt, and his golden brows furrowed together. It was a face contorted with pain and anguish. His usual cheerful and lively mood was replaced with that of a moody person.

Everyone was at a loss of what to do and did nothing but stare at his retreating figure until Kiba decided to ask, "Naruto, where are you going?"

With his back still facing them, Naruto stopped in his tracks and said in a glum voice, "I'll be waiting by Suna's entrance. If you have any business here, do it fast. You have five minutes." With that, he continued walking away.

"We're going back? But we just got here!" Kiba protested, though he knew as well as anyone else that it was pointless. It was the Hokage's orders.

Shikamaru's gaze moved to Hinata, who did not budge from her spot as she watched Naruto leave, and could make out the emotions in her eyes. Gaara was standing behind her, doing the same as she did. His gaze shifted back and he stated, "He no longer has any more reason to stay here."

Kiba sighed. "We might as well get on with it." He made his way to Hinata, with Akamaru in tow, and smiled at her, though a little sadly. "Hinata, we haven't greeted each other yet. I wouldn't have recognized you if it weren't for your scent" he chuckled.

Neji moved beside Kiba and narrowed his eyes at his cousin who simply looked up at him. "Speaking of which, why is your attire like so, Hinata-sama?"

Hinata followed her cousin's gaze as she looked down at the outfit she had momentarily forgotten she was still wearing. A tinge of pink immediately colored her cheeks. "Um…that is…" she stammered out her embarrassment. It was a challenge telling them about Kankuro's desperate request, first of, because it was awkward enough for her to explain and, secondly and most especially, because three of the most protective guys in her life were all present. "You see, Neji nii-san—"

"It has come to my attention that we should demand answers from the one who made Hinata do this" Shino stepped in. He had a hand raised, an insect resting on the very center of his palm.

"What do you mean, Shino?" Kiba turned to the bug-user.

Instead of answering, Shino looked at Hinata and said to her, "The bug I placed on you had told me everything." When Hinata blinked in surprise, he continued. "Hinata, who made you wear those clothes?"

Three pairs of eyes were suddenly on her. Despite expecting that this would happen, Hinata still fidgeted under their penetrating gazes. "K-Kankuro-san asked me. But it was only because he really needed my help!" Her effort in explaining was put to waste when all Kiba, Shino and Neji did was look at something far behind her. She turned and found Kankuro approaching them with Temari following shortly.

"Yo!" Kankuro saluted. He did not fail to notice the glares of the three guys directed to him. "What?" he blinked at them.

Kiba gritted his teeth. "Oi, puppet boy! I thought we made it clear to you _not_ to lay a finger on Hinata."

"The gall of you to ask Hinata-sama to wear such clothing" Neji frowned.

Kankuro winced. "Whoops…how'd you know it was me?"

"Shino placed a bug on Hinata before she left Konoha" Kiba answered. "Why, you lecherous bastard!"

"Wait!" Kankuro held up his hands, stopping Kiba from whatever he planned on doing. "I may have asked her to dress like that but, you gotta admit, she looks damn hot in those."

Kiba, Shino and Neji instantly froze.

Kankuro caught the glances they shot at Hinata. He couldn't help but grin triumphantly. Besides, who in their right mind could actually disagree with him?

Kiba coughed, his cheeks sporting a faint blush, while Shino cleared his throat, shoving back his hands to his overcoat's pockets.

"T-That's beside the point!" Kiba shouted and dismissed the puppeteer's notion. "I'd still beat the hell outta ya!" He fisted his hand at Kankuro.

"I regret nothing, though" Kankuro grinned.

Kiba grabbed Kankuro by the collar. "Hinata, I really don't see how you can stand this puppet boy" he spat out bitterly, his eyes never leaving Kankuro.

"Don't waste your saliva, dog face" Kankuro told him and pointed a finger to Hinata's direction.

Kiba's eyes followed and found Hinata talking to Gaara and Temari.

"Are you alright, Gaara?" Hinata asked with concern.

Temari crossed her arms over her chest. "I could have broken off the fight before it had gotten any worse." She frowned. "But Kankuro here stopped me from doing so."

Kankuro tugged himself free off Kiba's grip. "It was their fight, Temari. A man to man duel."

"You already told me that. Twice."

"No," Gaara spoke. "You could not have stopped the fight even if you wanted to. Naruto was intent on fighting me" he said, his eyes downcast, as if in deep thought.

Deep inside, Hinata was thankful Naruto hadn't used his tailed beast mode on Gaara. Even though earlier, it seemed like he had completely lost control.

"We better get going" Shikamaru finally stepped in. "Or Naruto wouldn't hesitate on leaving us behind."

With that, Kiba, Shino and Neji nodded. After bidding farewell to Hinata, the four turned and left.

* * *

The stars that night twinkled brightly outside the window of Hinata's room. The Kazekage tower was certainly the best place to stay in Suna, Hinata thought as she sat idly in her bed, unable to get some sleep. With one last look at the evening sky, she slowly got off the bed and grabbed her lavender jacket.

The nights in the deserts were cold and she would need to cover herself, especially because she was only wearing a white chemise made of thin satin that reached to just about her mid-thighs. Truth be told, it wasn't her usual and preferred sleepwear. But she had suspected too late that perhaps Hanabi rummaged through her things again and removed all her pajamas to replace them with lacy, frilly, girlish chemises. Goodness, there were even negligees.

"Show off more of those curves, Nee-san!" Hinata could almost hear Hanabi scolding her.

She smiled to herself. At least her younger sister still had the mercy to spare her for mornings and just took out her sleepwear and not daywear. Else, Hinata wouldn't find the courage to step outside and show her face again.

Slipping her jacket on, she headed to the door and left her room. The hallway was empty and would have been dark if it weren't for the wall lamps illuminating it. Hinata first thought of walking the streets to tire herself out. But remembering last time's incident with Gaara getting angry with her, she quickly decided against it.

"_Hinata…if ever you can't sleep again, tell me."_

Hinata blushed. She knew it was Gaara's way to express his concern. But it hadn't mattered much to her back then. Why should now be any different? Why was her heart beating like mad? Why was she feeling nervous about it? She'll just have to tell him she can't sleep. He was the one who offered to her, not her. _Pull yourself together, Hinata!_

Upon arriving at the Kazekage's office, Hinata had a moment of hesitation and stopped in front of the closed door. She assumed Gaara would still be inside, even though it was past sleeping time already. After taking a deep breath, she raised her hand to knock only to stop again.

Behind the door and inside the office, she heard a voice. A _woman's_ voice.

Hinata felt her heart sink and resisted the urge to activate her Byakugan. She frowned. Somehow, it seemed like a déjà vu. She shook her head, ridding the thoughts of turning back and walking away. It didn't take long before the door to the office opened and out came Arima. Again.

"H-Hinata-san?" Arima looked surprised to see her. She was still holding the door open.

"Good evening, Arima-san." Hinata bowed in greeting. She straightened up and spared a glance inside the room.

Arima saw this and glanced back as well. "Do…do you need something from Gaara-sama?"

Hinata stiffened. _Gaara…sama?_ Her jaw tightened and she unconsciously clenched her fists.

_Yes, I want to speak with Gaara! Now, move aside!_

She stifled a gasp. Did she just…? The voice inside her head sounded…_jealous_.

Arima blinked. "Is something wrong?"

Hinata lightly shook her head. "No" she answered. "I just wish to speak with Gaara."

Arima eyed her for a second before nodding. She turned around and announced, "K-Kazekage-sama, Hinata-san w-wants t-to speak w-with you."

"Let her in."

Arima bowed and turned back to Hinata. "Please come in" she said with a smile as she stepped aside and held out the door for the heiress. As soon as Hinata was inside, Arima closed the door silently but stayed in the room.

Hinata watched Gaara raise his head. His eyes landed on her and she saw a ghost of a smile had formed on his lips. "Gaara" she softly called.

"You wish to speak with me, Hinata?" If it weren't for his monotone, his voice would've sounded happy.

Hinata bit her lip and shyly nodded. "I…um…I just…that is…" she said incoherently. After sputtering a few more words, she closed her mouth shut, took a deep breath, and tried again. "I can't sleep."

"I see. So you remembered what I told you" Gaara said while rolling a scroll and placed it aside. "Naoshi-san, is there anything more you wanted to say?" he asked Arima with his eyes on another scroll on his table.

"Eh?" Arima jumped at being suddenly addressed. "Ah…n-no, K-kazekage-sama. I w-was just w-waiting for Hinata-san s-so…we c-c-could leave the r-room t-t-together."

_Well, you could have waited outside if that's what you really intended._ Hinata's eyes widened. She really ought to slap herself for being so rude.

"That won't be necessary" Gaara bluntly told her, shifting his gaze to Hinata. "I would be with Hinata, making some tea" he said and watched Hinata's face turn red probably from embarrassment.

"H-huh?" Arima blinked in surprise. "Tea?"

He nodded and continued writing something on a scroll.

"U-um…I c-c-could make i-it if you w-want" Arima said, resting a hand on her clothed chest.

Gaara unrolled another scroll. "No need."

Hinata took a step forward. "I…I'll make my own tea, Gaara. You don't have to do it."

Gaara's head snapped up and he blinked at her. "Why?"

Hinata averted her eyes to the ground. "Why…well…y-you're busy" She gestured to his table filled with papers.

His head slightly tilted. "Don't you want me to do it?"

_W-why is he asking me that?_ Hinata fidgeted. _And that look he's giving me…it almost seems like he's begging me to let him make my tea._ "I…didn't say that" she muttered softly.

"Good" Gaara said before he got back to his work.

"Um…" Arima voice sounded and Hinata turned to look at her. "I-I'll be on m-my way, then. G-good night, K-kazekage-sama" She said and bowed to Gaara. As she straightened up, she faced Hinata. "Good night, Hinata-san."

"Good night, Arima-san" Hinata said and bowed.

Arima gave one last look at Gaara who was busy writing something, and headed to the door. She left the room, quietly closing the door behind her.

She slowly walked the hallway and a sigh escaped her trembling lips. _Shiro-chan was right. Gaara-sama bears romantic feelings for Hinata-san._ She smiled dejectedly. _How can one not see it…Gaara-sama's reactions around Hinata-san?_ She clutched a hand to her chest as if holding her aching heart, remembering what happened earlier before Hinata came in the room.

She went to his office as usual to report to him regarding the patients' condition in the hospital. Gaara certainly paid attention to her and he even asked a few questions. But not once did he look at her. It had not only happened once, but a lot of times already whenever she reported.

It was _always_ like that.

She didn't mind. She knew he was like that. And being able to talk to him, to be close to him, was more than enough for her. She was content to stay that way. Until she found Hinata outside the office. The feeling of jealousy flowed inside her that it was overwhelming. She even went so far as to boldly stay inside the room and listen to Hinata and Gaara converse.

She immediately regretted it.

She should've left completely. If she only knew that she would see Gaara's smiling face, she would've left completely. That smile of his, no matter how badly she wanted to see it, it wasn't meant for her.

Arima inhaled sharply and she felt a tear slide down her cheek.

It hurts. Seeing Gaara fully give his attention to Hinata, seeing his stoic features soften at just the sight of her, seeing him smile at her, seeing him look at her like she's the only person that mattered.

She sobbed, gripping her chest tightly until her knuckles turned white. "G-Gaara-sama…it…hurts…."

* * *

"Take a seat while you wait" Gaara told Hinata and gestured to a chair beside the kitchen table. Once Hinata was seated, he moved to the cupboards and grabbed two white cups and their matching saucers. And like last time, he filled one cup of coffee while the other was a cup of tea.

"You still don't believe me that coffee makes you bald?" Hinata said in a playful manner.

"Quite so" he replied with a small smile.

"But I really do think you've lost a lot of hair, Gaara."

After stirring the coffee, he grabbed the two cups and went to the table. "I think otherwise" he said. He placed the tea in front of Hinata, pulled out a chair and seated himself. He eyed Hinata for a moment before taking a sip on his cup. "Don't worry. I did not put any sand in there, though that would be bland compared to last time."

Hinata smiled. "Thank you, Gaara."

Gaara stared at her. "For what?"

She giggled. "Why do you always ask that same question every time?"

He lightly shrugged. "Habit?"

"Maybe" she said and looked down on her cup. The mirth in her eyes was gone. "I'm sorry for being a bother, especially in the middle of your work."

"No" he said.

Her eyes darted to his. "Eh?"

"You weren't a bother" he said. _You never were._ He took another sip and set his cup down with a soft clink. "Why can't you sleep?" He saw her stiffen.

"I was…" Hinata gripped her cup. "I was worried about Naruto-kun."

Gaara was silent.

"Neji nii-san and the others told me earlier that he came to Suna because of me" she said. Worry was evident on her voice. "For him to leave so soon…it was entirely my fault. Everything was my fault."

"No," Gaara said. "It's not. I'm also to blame. Naruto saw us in that…position. And it was because I ran from you."

Hinata blushed, remembering Gaara's hand on her cheek, how warm and soothing his hand felt against her skin. She had cried in front of him for the second time. And he comforted her once more. "I'm still glad though, you're talking to me again" she said, smiling.

"Yes" was all he said. His gaze from her face suddenly lowered.

Hinata's eyes followed to where he was looking and saw her white chemise. The zipper of her jacket had already slid halfway down, daringly exposing half of her nightwear to Gaara. Her hands immediately shot up to tug the edges of her jacket close. She would have to remind herself to fix the zipper first thing tomorrow morning.

Gaara's eyes went back up but he didn't comment anything.

She inwardly sighed in relief. "G-Gaara, do you want to go to the rooftop?" she said, wanting to break the silence that was beginning to grow uncomfortable. "I was just thinking…of seeing the stars tonight." She smiled shyly.

It took a moment before Gaara nodded his head.

After finishing their drinks, they both stood up and quietly made their way to the rooftop of the Kazekage tower. And as soon as they got there, Hinata immediately seated herself and gazed up at the starry sky.

Gaara, on the other hand, took the time to study her. The cool breeze of the desert blew on her face, her silky indigo hair flowing in gentle waves. Her pale eyes gleamed with contentment and sparkled like the stars. Her soft lips curved graciously into a smile. Her cheeks had a pinkish color, like a permanent blush on her face.

She was ethereal.

A nymph.

"Gaara?" Hinata looked over him curiously, snapping him back to reality. "Sit beside me?" She patted the space next to her.

He complied, almost immediately. His body just moved on its own accord, giving him no chance to make a choice. He took a seat near her that their shoulders were touching. He looked at Hinata. She did not seem to mind the proximity. Rather, he even felt her slightly lean on him. Whether it was consciously or not, he didn't know. All he knows was that his heart wouldn't stop pounding on his chest. It hammered so loudly that it reached his ears. He vaguely wondered if Hinata could hear it too.

Hinata sighed contentedly. "I wonder if Konoha's seeing the same beautiful sky such as this" she mused.

"You could go back if you want to" Gaara said quietly. "I'm permitting you." The vivid memory of Naruto's pained expression flashed in his mind.

Hinata turned to him. "I…I can't do that."

"I can."

She shook her head. "I'm still on a mission. I just can't abandon—"

"In that case, I'll force you to go back" he said with firmness in his tone.

Hinata just stared at him.

"Naruto was upset. We're both very well aware of that" Gaara said. "After seeing us like that, he would definitely misunderstand." He looked up at the sky. "It would be best if you go and have a talk with him."

Hinata couldn't help but agree. She should really talk to Naruto. What he saw was not what it had looked like. He had simply misunderstood. Yes…he had just misunderstood.

Right?

Her eyes wandered at the sight of the village. The village protected by Gaara. _If I leave, I won't be seeing Gaara in a long time._ Absent-mindedly, she leaned her head on Gaara's shoulder.

Gaara almost jumped in shock. His head immediately turned to Hinata.

She closed her eyes. _I won't be able to talk to him._ _I'd be away from him._ Slowly opening her eyes, she tilted her head upward to look at Gaara. His jade eyes…those eyes that enthralled her so much. _I won't be able to see how his eyes would glow beautifully at night. How it would show the emotions he's feeling inside…I won't be able to see them._

"Hinata…" Gaara breathed. Her face was so close to his. And all he could hear was the quick beating of his heart ringing on his ears.

_I won't be able to see him. Not when I'm in Konoha._ She raised a hand and cupped his cheek, brushing her thumb softly against it.

Gaara swallowed hard. It was too much. Her touch was too much for him to handle. As much as he tried to desperately resist the urge to touch her back, it was futile. And before he knew it, his body reacted automatically. In a blink of an eye, he had a hand on her chin, holding her face in place. He didn't know why, but he somehow found himself slowly leaning down until her lips were just an inch away from his that he could feel her breath.

"Gaara" She whispered softly. "I'll miss you…."

Whatever control Gaara had left was gone. He further leaned down, closing the gap between them, and brushed his lips lightly against hers. Once, twice…Kami, her lips were softer than they looked. And her taste…maybe it was because of the tea he gave her, but she tasted sweet.

He felt Hinata's lips move, but it was to gasp. She immediately pushed him away, breaking the kiss.

Hinata stared at him with a stunned expression and a hand went to touch her lips. It was a while before she spoke. "W-why…?"

Gaara just looked back at her, unable to answer, as stunned as she was for his actions. At least Hinata hadn't acted like she really was disgusted by it. She hadn't even move from her spot and had just placed a hand on his chest to stop him from doing anything more.

"Gaara…you…" Hinata searched his eyes for answers but found none. "You just…you did…why did you k-kiss me?" She looked down. A faint blush grazed her cheeks. "Please…don't do that again."

Gaara felt like someone had just stabbed him. The pain was unbearable. "Why?" He actually did not know why he asked.

"Because…" Hinata gazed into his eyes.

He looked back at her and noticed how her cheeks turned from pink to red. "Because, what?"

The hand Hinata placed on his chest slowly slid up to his shoulder and she leaned up to him. "Because you'll make it more difficult for me to leave."

Maybe it was because of her leaning up or because of the look she was giving him that Gaara was able to know what she really wanted. "I see" he whispered and swiftly lowered his face down to Hinata, capturing her lips once more. His kiss was light and gentle, more of tentative. And it had remained that way until Hinata increased the pressure by locking her lips more firmly with his. His arm slid around her waist in response, pulling her closer to him.

Hinata moaned softly against him and she wrapped her arms around his neck. She slanted her mouth and deepened the kiss. She whispered his name and she felt him bit her lower lip lightly, emitting a sigh from her. And at that moment, nothing seemed to matter. Not even the fact that she just told Gaara earlier not to kiss her again.

Well, he hadn't promised her either.

After a while, Hinata broke the kiss. And she abruptly stood up and turned around, her back facing Gaara so he won't see her face looking like a tomato. Kami, she hadn't expected this. She just kissed Gaara.

She just _kissed_ Gaara!

Why had she done that?! Why couldn't she just walk away from him? Why couldn't her hands, which have a mind on their own, keep from touching him? Why? Why? Why? This wasn't supposed to happen. Her heart was pounding like crazy and her hands were sweaty. It almost seemed like…like…she was in love.

Hinata looked at Gaara over her shoulder. He stared back at her with confusion in his eyes. She's in love…with _Gaara_?

She lightly shook her head, forcing herself to focus. She turned back around. "I…I could prepare for my leave first thing tomorrow morning."

It took Gaara a moment to process what's she's saying. "Good." He stood up and cleared his throat. "I'll prepare a letter for Naruto then, informing him of your early dismissal" he said, looking at the view of the village.

Hinata just nodded, not trusting her voice anymore. She glanced at Gaara and caught him looking at her. She felt her face heat up and, as if on cue, remembered their kiss. Gaara must have had thought the same for he looked away and kept silent.

_I knew it…_ Hinata inwardly sighed. _Kissing Gaara only made it harder to leave._

* * *

**A/N: There you have it…a kiss. Yipee…*yawns* Finally, I can get some sleep. Oh, please tell me your honest opinions. Constructive criticisms are very much welcomed. And if you have any suggestions, please tell me. Thank you. zzzZzzz**

**R&R, 10 reviews**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Ooh, I just checked the last chapter and saw a **_**lot**_** of typos and scenes that were rushed (e.g. kissing scene). Bleh, I wasn't satisfied with the kiss so I put more "things" to it and rewrote it, especially because it has come to my attention that you wished it would have been longer. Hehe, so sorry. I was already having a hard time seeing straight due to sleepiness when I was typing that part. So I was unable to put myself completely **_**in**_** the mood for that scene.**

**Oh and, only three more chapters to go and it would be bye-bye to this story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 22**

Hinata sighed as she continued to stare up at the Sunagakure sky from her window. She was back in her room and was supposed to be packing her things up for tomorrow. But then, her mind was not on the work. It won't stop its wandering to a certain redheaded Kazekage who she had just kissed earlier.

She blushed, remembering the kiss. Her heart gave a flutter, and a hand went to her lips. _Oh, what have I done? _"Why had I kissed him?" she muttered to herself. She turned her head and her eyes went to her things laid out on the floor. She had not known packing could be so difficult, especially when you didn't want to leave.

She sighed and shifted her gaze back to the night sky.

But she had to go. She needs to talk to Naruto about what happened. She needs to clear things up with him. _We had just made up…and now another misunderstanding had occurred._

Or was it really a misunderstanding?

She lifted a hand to her chest and felt her heartbeat against it. What does she feel really? Naruto was her first love and she had loved him ever since their childhood, even when she had her heart broken on seeing him and Sakura kissing. Yes, she still loved him despite telling herself she didn't anymore. She still loved him despite turning herself numb.

But then Gaara stepped into her life...had she still loved Naruto the same way?

Gaara changed her. In front of him, she was able to show her emotions. Until, gradually, she was able to be herself again. To be able to smile whole-heartedly, to be able to laugh, to cry, to speak her honest feelings. He had taught her all these things. He had taught her how it feels to be…_alive._

She closed her eyes. It was now clear to her. All this time, she had denied everything. She knew, all along, what she felt for Gaara but was just afraid of admitting it, afraid of breaking again. She smiled wistfully to herself. "I've been so selfish. All along I thought I was the most pitiful." She bowed her head. "I must look really ugly right now."

She inhaled deeply, taking in the air of Suna. She had begun liking the village, maybe because of the people living in it. She didn't want to leave, but she had to. And this time, she knew exactly _why_ she had to. Not because of apologizing to Naruto of the misunderstanding, but because of apologizing to him for the heartache _she_ had caused him.

It was time to make everything clear, once and for all. It was time to let go of the chains she had bound herself with. It was time to admit to herself and to everyone of what she really feels.

* * *

Hinata opened her eyes only to squeeze them shut when she was greeted by the sun rays. It was already morning but she hadn't gotten much sleep. She had been thinking a lot last night that even the herbal tea Gaara made hadn't helped. After stretching her limbs, Hinata slowly rose from her bed. Her eyes darted to the bag at the foot of the bed. Good thing she had managed to finish packing her stuff. Had she not, she would have been in a panic by now.

After fixing herself up, Hinata grabbed her bag and headed to the door. But before opening it, she looked back and had one last look of her room. Today is the day she leaves for Konoha and she wondered when she would be able to come back. Sighing, Hinata opened the door and left the room quietly.

Once she returns home, how would she approach Naruto? What would be his reaction when he sees her? Would he be angry, perhaps? Disappointed? Unhappy?

Of course he would be displeased once he sees her. If she were in his shoes she may have felt and done the same. Naruto went all the way from Konoha just to see _her._ Of course he would be mad after seeing them like that.

She had already given it a thought of what to say to Naruto. But how exactly would she tell him of what she thought about last night? How would she approach the subject?

She didn't know.

Everything was already clear to her. But she was still uneasy. Because everything was her fault from the very beginning. If only she was not weak, if only she was courageous enough to have approached Naruto, everything would not have turned out like this. She would have been happy with him. Because it was her childhood dream, her wish to be with the one she loves the most.

But no. Everything had already happened. And she has to face what was happening now. She has to live with the present.

But she knew, somehow, that everything that had happened was not a mistake. Everyone she had met, everything she had felt, everything she had experienced was bound to happen. Her meeting with Temari, and later Kankuro and Gaara…everything was supposed to happen. She may have regretted not asking Naruto so soon of what really happened three years ago, but if it weren't for that, she would not have been close to Temari, Kankuro and Gaara.

And she hoped Naruto would understand that…even though it meant not forgiving her.

Hinata was about to leave the Kazekage tower when she spotted Temari and Kankuro standing by the entrance. When they saw her, a sad look was on their faces. Once she reached them, Temari spoke up.

"I heard from Gaara" she said.

Kankuro exhaled an aggravated sigh. "Geez, I can't believe he's letting you go."

Hinata smiled at their concern. "I told him last night I had made up with Naruto before I left Konoha. It gave him more reason to make me return home. He said he didn't want us to have anymore misunderstandings."

"That's what he told us" Kankuro said. "I just knew the whole thing earlier. Your situation with Naruto, I mean. I hadn't known you liked him."

Temari crossed her arms. "So it wasn't that shrimp's fault for hurting you. But I'm still not willing to forgive him."

Kankuro cupped a hand at the side of his mouth and whispered to Hinata, "Ignore her. She's just too stubborn to admit that she's guilty on blaming Naruto for what has happened to you."

"I heard that" Temari said and jabbed him at the side. Hard. Kankuro groaned, clutching his side but Temari paid him no mind and turned to Hinata. "Gaara's waiting for you at the entrance" she said, smiling.

Hinata nodded and was about to leave when Temari called her name. The look on Hinata's face was inquisitive.

"Just…" Temari said, staring at pale lavender eyes with pure concern. "Take care, Hinata."

Hinata gave her one of her warmest smile and Temari smiled in return. "Thank you, Temari-san" she said. "You take care as well."

Temari watched as Hinata turned and went on her way, waving a hand at her and the still-in-pain Kankuro. She'll surely miss Hinata. Although a month has passed since her stay in Suna, it still seemed like days to her. Would Hinata be able to visit Suna again? Would she be able to see Hinata again? Oh how she wanted to smack Gaara in the head for making the lovely girl leave.

But Temari knows better. She understands her brother's intention. She understands why he insisted on her leaving. It wasn't only because he treasured his friendship with Naruto. It was also because Hinata was precious to him. Hinata was precious to him _and_ to Naruto.

That was why he was letting Hinata go. That's why he was setting her free. He wanted them to be happy, thinking that Hinata still felt the same for Naruto.

_Oh, Gaara…_Temari absently stared at the direction where Hinata disappeared to. _If only you knew Hinata already loves you._

She could see the hints, the smallest of details from Hinata. The glances she gives towards Gaara, the emotions stirring in her eyes, the blushes. And although she hadn't noticed her little brother was ignoring the love of his life, she had seen Hinata's troubled face, the worry, the sadness…they were all clear.

"Gaara should keep her here, tell you that" Kankuro said, grunting while he got to his feet. "Imprisoning Hinata would be good if he really wants her."

"Kankuro…" Temari said darkly, clenching her fist. Kankuro barely had the time to blink when his sister's fist collided with his carefully painted face, sending him back to the ground. "Shut your trap or you'll be the one in need of imprisonment!"

The puppeteer groaned in pain. "A hospital would be good."

* * *

When Hinata neared the passageway, she spotted Gaara leaning with his back against the wall. He had his arms crossed over his chest, his head bowed down, and his eyes closed. He must have sensed her presence for he opened his eyes and looked at her in those jade orbs of his.

Her breath immediately got caught in her throat and she felt her cheeks heat up, stopping her in her tracks. Though she willed her feet to move, they remained glued to the ground and she could only stare at Gaara. Looking at him in the eyes, the look he was giving her made her heart clench. His face remained impassive but his eyes were filled with melancholy. She watched him uncross his arms and slowly walk towards her.

Even when Gaara had already reached her, neither of them moved a single muscle. No words were exchanged for a moment, just a silent conversation with their eyes. Ever since meeting Hinata, his life drastically changed. His emotions were in constant turmoil and he had to experience too much confusion and headaches until he could finally realize he loved her. In fact, he loved her too much than he had first thought. He loved the way she calls his name, her gracefulness, her gentleness and kindness. He loved her smooth skin, her cheeks that seemed to have a permanent blush, her long silky hair, her pearl-like eyes, her long eyelashes, her nose, and—Kami—her lips. Her pink plump lips. How he wished he would be able to kiss her again, to feel how soft her lips were, to taste how soft they were. He wanted to repeat last night, to repeat their kiss.

But he can't. He was the one who convinced her to leave, the one who wanted for her to go back. Though, in all honesty, he didn't want her to leave. He didn't want to let her go.

But he had to.

Naruto loves her and he had vowed to himself to not get in their way. He had wished for their happiness but all he did was become their obstacle. He wanted to fulfill their wishes, to be with each other. So he'll let Hinata go. Besides, she wasn't even his to begin with.

However…

He raised a hand to caress her cheek. Hinata didn't move away, but she looked at him in surprise.

However, just this once, he wanted her to be his own….

"Hinata," he whispered softly. "Please walk with me for a while."

It took Hinata a moment before she was able to nod her head. Gaara gently grabbed her hand. This caught the attention of several civilians on the street. They stared at them with their mouths agape and eyes wide. Hinata noticed this and blushed in embarrassment. She bowed her head down, letting her hair shield her from their unwanted gazes.

Gaara led her along the street, all the while ignoring the looks sent their way. He held her hand tighter. This made Hinata's head turn to their clasped hands. He looked at her and watched her features soften. He felt her hand hold his more firmly. She looked up and smiled sweetly at him. He smiled back at her and he thought he might have heard gasps around them as they walked. The Kazekage rarely smiles. No, he _never_ smiles at all.

After walking for a few moments, with Gaara leading the way, the both of them soon stopped. Hinata looked around her and found that they stood at a high place overlooking Sunagakure, almost similar to Konoha's view on top of the Hokage monuments.

It was simply breathtaking.

Hinata couldn't help the sigh of contentment that escaped her lips despite feeling Gaara's gaze on her. She turned her head to the side to look at him. There it was again…the sadness in his eyes. He still hadn't let go of her hand. But she didn't mind.

Her eyes unconsciously slid down to his lips and she found herself unable to look away, remembering the kiss they had last night. His lips were unexpectedly soft. She always thought they felt more like…well…like sandpaper. When Gaara kissed her, he was very gentle that it surprised her, though she half-expected it. After all, Gaara was one of the kindest person she had ever known. And the way he held her had felt so good. It wasn't the first time he had his arms around her, they hugged several times in the past. But that time was just different. _Very_ different.

"Hinata" Gaara softly called, snapping Hinata out of her reverie. Her eyes darted back to his. He really didn't know what to say to her. "It's… difficult to say when we'll see each other again."

Hinata looked away. "Yes" she whispered. They remained silent for a while just looking at the view in front of them. Then, Hinata spoke. "About your fight with Naruto-kun…"

Gaara's eyes shifted back to her, encouraging her to continue.

"I wanted to thank you" she finished. She turned to look at him and smiled. "When Naruto-kun was able to land a hit on you, you could've fought him some more" she said. "Yet you chose to stay down and give him a chance to strike you again." Gaara remained silent and so she continued. "I know you did it because you wanted Naruto-kun to vent out his anger on you. You blamed yourself for his anger." That time, when Gaara had hit the ground, Hinata felt her heart stop. She saw Naruto move to him and raise his fist. An image of Gaara bleeding all over suddenly flashed in her mind. And just like that, her body reacted automatically. The next thing she realized, she was facing Naruto and had shouted at him to stop.

"You don't need to thank me" Gaara said in a low voice. "Because it was really my fault."

"But I think otherwise" Hinata said. There was a moment of silence before she spoke once more. "I wonder how Naruto-kun would react once he sees me" she mused.

Gaara eyed her for a second. "If it's Naruto, I'm sure he'll do his best to understand" he said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he has forgiven you by now."

"Perhaps" she said. "Naruto-kun has a big heart after all." She turned to him, smiling. "Like you do, Gaara."

His eyes widened at her. That caught him off guard. "Me?"

She nodded. "You might not have noticed it but you are, in fact, a selfless person."

Gaara nearly snorted at that. Hinata may have been talking more about herself, not him. "How am I a selfless?"

Hinata's smile didn't falter. "You care for other's welfare more than yours. For example, yesterday you pushed me away so that I would not be hurt from your fight."

"Naruto wouldn't hurt you, Hinata. He was aiming for me" Gaara said.

"But that time, he was too focused on you to see me. If you hadn't done what you did, I may have gotten injured."

Gaara lightly shook his head. "I'm still not convinced."

Hinata tapped a finger to her lips, thinking deeply. "Well, how about when you made me tea so I could sleep?" she said. "You served me tea twice. A few months ago and last night."

Gaara froze. "Last…night…" he mumbled.

Their kiss flashed on Hinata's mind, instantly turning her face red. She instinctively snatched her hand from Gaara's grasp. Her heart was pounding on her ears and she willed herself to calm down. All she did was mention the herbal tea. Why would she recall something like that? She glanced at Gaara. He was looking away, as if he couldn't bear to look at her. Was he thinking the same thing? Was his heart beating fast as well? Speaking of which, _why_ had he kissed her? She swallowed a lump in her throat and opened her mouth to speak. "Why…" her voice was hoarse. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Last night, why did you…kiss me?"

Slowly, Gaara turned to face her but his eyes were downcast. "About last night…"

Hinata waited, a hand was on her clothed chest as if shielding herself of what was to come. Last night she went to Gaara's office because she couldn't sleep. Her thoughts were filled with Naruto's reaction when he arrived in Suna. She figured maybe the reason why Naruto was angry was because he thought Gaara made her cry. She felt guilty for causing the fight when the two of them were supposed to be friends. Gaara shouldn't have blamed himself because it was really her fault. Naruto should have punched her, not Gaara. Furthermore, she knew Naruto was hurt because she decided to defend Gaara. But she did not regret what she did. That was why she didn't know what to do. She didn't know how to explain it to Naruto. That was why she couldn't sleep. So Gaara made her tea and when they went to the rooftop, he told her to go back to Konoha. The next thing she knew, he was kissing her. She didn't even know what made her do it or what had gotten to her, but she kissed him back. All thoughts of Naruto were gone and momentarily forgotten.

Gaara's jade eyes went to her pale ones. "I won't…apologize for last night." At Hinata's confused expression, he elaborated, "I won't apologize for kissing you."

Hinata's cheeks turned a darker shade of red but she managed— more like forced herself— to keep an eye contact.

"I kissed you because...I…wanted to" Gaara said with uncertainty in his voice. "Because I wasn't able to help myself…"

Hinata stared at him in shock, though nothing could have prepared her more for his next words. It took a while for Hinata's brain to finally register what he had said. And it left her speechless.

"Because I love you, Hinata."

* * *

**A/N: I finished this chapter a week ago but I felt like something was missing. So, I checked it a few times until I liked it…a little. I really debated on myself if the ending's appropriate or not. What do you think? Sucks?**

**Btw, damn, I didn't enjoy the last two chapters of the Naruto manga. Why, Kishimoto?! WHY?!**

**Okay, that's enough from me.**

**R&R, 10 reviews.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 23**

"_Because I love you, Hinata."_

Jumping down from a tree branch, Hinata landed gracefully to the ground. She was on her way to Konoha and as each day passed, the more nervous she became. She was nearing her village and that would mean facing Naruto. So while she travelled, she continually thought of how she would approach the blond Hokage…only to be distracted by images of a certain redheaded Kazekage. For the last two days, she couldn't stop herself from thinking about Gaara's confession and she held her mind responsible for replaying it endlessly.

Lightly shaking her head, she continued on her way while thinking how she wasn't even given a chance to say her opinion on his confession.

_She felt her heart stop and stood frozen for a moment until she finally managed to find her voice. "Um…Gaara, I—"_

"_It's alright," Gaara cut in. "you don't have to answer that." He looked away nonchalantly, but she could feel he was slightly fidgeting._

_She honestly didn't know what to say so she kept quiet and just looked at him. His confession was sudden but she knew he was serious. Gaara rarely jokes around. She discreetly raised a hand to her chest. It would be a complete lie to say she wasn't greatly affected at all, because it was definitely obvious that she was. She just couldn't ignore the erratic beating of her heart against her chest, the pulsating of her nerves, and the reddening of her face. She couldn't say it was a new sensation. Rather, it was a familiar one. She felt the same when Naruto confessed to her in the past. _

_No, not the same. _

_It was familiar…but entirely different. She smiled to herself. Somehow, this feeling she felt was worlds better than before._

_Gaara shifted but avoided meeting her gaze. "Thank you for your time" he said, indicating that their talk was over. "I'll see you leave."_

_If she hadn't known him better, she would have gone against it. But since it was Gaara, she knew very well that he would be stubborn about it so she didn't bother. After giving him a nod, both of them made their way to Sunagakure's passageway where she will leave. The silence that hung in the air was awkward as they walked but neither of them tried starting another conversation._

_It wasn't until they reached the destination that Gaara turned to her. His eyes were void with emotion when they bore into her confused ones. "Be careful on your way" he said. Even his voice sounded monotonous when it usually sounded more soothing and softer to her. And though he was standing with his arms crossed over his chest like usual, she could tell his posture was rigid._

Grabbing a tree branch, Hinata swiftly swung herself and jumped on another branch. Was she just reading too much into it?

_She was about to dash away to leave when she suddenly felt a hand on her wrist, immediately stopping her. When she turned her head, she found Gaara staring intently at his hand clamped on her small wrist. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see some Sand ninjas who stood in watch look at their Kazekage curiously. Temari and Kankuro who were behind Gaara had the same expression on. _

_When Gaara didn't move or speak, she opened her mouth to ask him if he needed anything. But his voice stopped her. "…go" His voice was so low and quiet that she was only able to hear the last word._

"_I beg your pardon?" she said, shifting closer to him for her to hear._

_Gaara suddenly released his hold on her wrist as if he was burned by it. He straightened himself up before crossing his arm once more. "Go to Naruto and clear things up with him" he said to her, more loudly this time._

She knew that wasn't what he said at first but didn't question him. Though she still wondered of what Gaara was trying to tell her. It was already afternoon and the heat of the sun was getting warmer. Hinata didn't know whether to be glad or be filled with dread when she halted at the sight of the wide open gates of Konoha from a far distance.

Fixing her gaze on a figure leaning casually against the gate, she thought the latter would be a better choice as of the moment. Her heart raced with anxiety and her mouth instantly dried as she took in the form of none other than Uzumaki Naruto wearing his white Hokage cape similar to Yondaime's. His hands were on his pockets and he was looking at something far away, lost in his own thoughts.

And it was exactly his very presence that made Hinata think about turning and running back to Suna. Naruto was waiting for her. He _definitely_ was waiting for her. She should have known. He would be there because Gaara had sent him a message informing him of her leave. Of course Naruto would wait for her arrival. But doesn't he have a lot more things to do than wait for a less worthy Konoha shinobi like her?

She slowly took a shaky breath. _Calm down, Hinata. You could do this._ She took a small step forward in a very slow pace that could rival a turtle's. Naruto didn't stir, but she knew full well that he was aware of her presence. Without her Byakugan, she couldn't gauge his reaction from the current distance between them. And her body obviously had no plan on closing it soon.

She stopped her attempt on moving a foot and sighed, feeling pathetic and also probably looking like one. Where was her backbone when she needed it? _Stop being cowardly and go to him!_, she mentally berated herself. Willing her feet to move on a faster pace, Hinata walked towards Naruto.

When she reached a fair distance from him, Naruto turned his head and regarded her. His blank stare made her slightly cower under his gaze but she waited patiently for him to say something. When nothing came from him, Hinata couldn't take any more of it and broke the long period of silence. She bowed in greeting. "I'm back" she said in a small voice filled with uncertainty.

Naruto's eyes remained on her for a second before he finally looked away. "Naruto will attend to you shortly" he said impassively.

Hinata straightened herself up and stared at him in confusion. Then, realization came to her. The Naruto in front of her was just a clone summoned only to wait for her arrival. The real Naruto must have had a meeting or something.

Or maybe he just couldn't stomach seeing her face too soon.

The clone continued, "Meet him at the top of the Hokage monuments."

As soon as Hinata nodded her response, the clone disappeared in a puff of smoke. She thought of heading to the Hyuuga compound first but decided against it. What if Naruto were to be at the meeting place any second now? She didn't want him to wait for her. He was a busy man and, well, she wasn't worth the wait. Pulling the hood of her jacket up so as not to draw the attention of some random guy wanting to have a talk with her, Hinata was about to jump up on the nearest rooftop and make her way to the Hokage monuments when she heard someone call her name. She froze, wondering if she'll be crowded over again by a bunch of people and be delayed. She slowly turned her head to find Sakura looking back at her with a shocked expression on her face. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Sakura-san" she greeted with a bow.

"Hinata," Sakura said. "Since when did you come back?"

"Just a while ago" Hinata replied.

"Oh, right" Sakura mused. "Naruto did mention you were coming back today." There was a short pause before she said, "Hinata, what happened in Suna?"

Hinata's eyes widened. "Eh?"

Sakura's expression turned thoughtful. "You see, Tsunade-sama sent Naruto to Suna because she saw of how much he missed you" she said. "We just didn't expect him to come back so soon. So, we were wondering what happened. We tried asking Naruto but he won't say a thing about it. He just kept telling us he was fine but he obviously wasn't. Not when he looked like he was in a sort of pain."

Hinata swallowed hard, the guilt she felt increasing. "Haven't you asked Kiba-kun and the others who were with him?"

"We did" Sakura replied. "But even they won't say a word. Naruto must've ordered them to stay silent. That's why I'm asking you. What happened in Suna, Hinata?"

Sakura's intent gaze made Hinata uncomfortable once again. Naturally, she would tell the pink-haired kunoichi the truth. But she couldn't bring herself to do it. Her fear was there. If she'll tell her she was the cause of Naruto's strange behavior, she feared Sakura would hate her. Or worse, scorn her. What should she tell her then, if not the truth? She didn't want to be hated but she also didn't want lie.

Sakura noticed Hinata's discomfort. The girl was fidgeting, something she hadn't seen her do for several years already. Indeed, it was strange for Naruto to come back so suddenly. But what she found more unusual was Hinata's early leave. Naruto had informed her that the Kazekage permitted Hinata to return to Konoha but her medical team would remain in Suna. When she tried asking Naruto the reason, he ignored her question and told her something else. She would've beaten him up if not for the depressed aura hanging all over him. Why was he acting like that? Why had Hinata left early? Whatever was happening, she knew it had something to do between the both of them. And Hinata was probably there to talk to Naruto about it. She wanted to know because she was worried for her teammate. But seeing how her question made Hinata uneasy, she couldn't bring herself to force an answer out of the Hyuuga heiress. If Hinata was really there for the reason she had thought, then maybe it would be best if she left them alone and let them solve the problem themselves.

"Hinata" Sakura called. When pale lavender eyes shifted to look at her, she offered a smile. "Are you going to Naruto?"

Hinata stared at her in surprise. "Yes."

"Then you should hurry up and go to him" Sakura said. "You don't want him waiting, do you?"

Realizing that Sakura had deliberately stopped her from answering her previous question, Hinata's features softened and she smiled. "Yes."

* * *

When he found her, she was standing solemnly at the top of the Hokage monuments waiting for him to appear. She was looking at the village with a soft look on her face. She had a faint blush on her cheeks, her lips were curved in a small smile, and her long indigo hair was flowing freely with the cool afternoon breeze.

The sight of her took his breath away.

He shook his head and willed himself to focus. When Gaara had sent him a letter regarding Hinata's early leave, he knew it was for her to be able to talk to him. The stabbing pain of seeing her with one of his closest friends was still there. But after giving it a lot of thought, he thought maybe it wasn't what it had seemed to be. Shikamaru had even pointed it to him. And when thing were put that way, he felt extremely ashamed of himself for acting without thinking. Although he was known for being an aggressive ninja in the past, he had never felt so ashamed of his actions before than now. His aggressiveness not only made him fight one of his friends but also caused such trouble for everyone, especially Hinata. It was obvious she was uncomfortable when she had greeted his clone earlier. He hadn't liked it one bit.

And he'll do anything to fix it.

Forcing a huge grin on his face, Naruto made his way towards Hinata. After stopping a few feet away from her, he greeted in a lively manner, "Hinata! Sorry for the wait!"

Hinata's head snapped to him in surprise. Not because of his presence but because of the manner he was speaking. Immediately regaining her composure, she bowed in greeting. "Good afternoon, Hokage-sama" she said.

Naruto stood dumbfounded. _Hokage...sama?_

"Thank you for giving me your time despite your busy schedule" she said with her head still bowed low.

_She's being so formal_, he thought. _Well, considering what happened, I guess it's reasonable._ Grinning, he said in a playful manner, "Aw c'mon, Hinata! Don't treat me like a stranger!"

Hinata immediately straightened up, a bit taken aback by his remark.

He stared into her pearl-like eyes. He had a lot of things to tell her but he didn't know where and how to begin. He smiled at her. "I've been thinking on what happened" he said, noticing her posture stiffen. "I acted brashly. And I'm sorry to you and Gaara" he sincerely said and looked away.

"Na-Naruto kun…please…don't be sorry for me" she said. "In fact, it should be me who should apologize to you." When Naruto didn't say anything, she turned her gaze back to the village and continued. "But before that, I would just like to explain…what you saw back in Suna."

He looked at her, giving her his full attention.

"When I arrived in Suna for the mission, Gaara avoided me. I tried for several weeks to ask him why, but he kept ignoring me" she said. "Finally I couldn't take it any longer and forced him to answer. And so I fought him, with him just blocking all my attacks. It got to a point where Gaara dropped his sand and let me hit him. That time, I was so frustrated and confused that I did nothing but tackle him to the ground and cry on him."

Naruto was silent for a second, contemplating on her words. "So, it was a misunderstanding" he said, chuckling. "Then, the blame's really on me."

Hinata shook her head. "Please listen." When she was sure she had Naruto's attention, she said, "This is not just about what happened in Suna. This is also about what happened from the beginning, three years ago."

He gave her a confused look. "What do you mean?"

She gave him a wistful smile. "I've been selfish" she said. "And I've been a coward. For the last three years I hid from everyone and I avoided asking you for the truth. If I had only asked you a long time ago, it wouldn't have turned this complicated." She looked up into his blue eyes. "But I didn't." She still remembered how flustered she would get when those eyes would look at her. But that was in the past. "Perhaps it's not right of me to ask for your forgiveness…so I won't. But, Naruto-kun, it's my fault for causing you such pain. All these years, it's my fault for letting you suffer because of my own weakness. It's my fault for letting you undergo what I should've dealt with myself. From the very beginning, everything was because of me. You have fought Gaara because of me. Because I was weak, coward and selfish."

Naruto remained silent as he stared at her, wide-eyed.

"You were supposed to be friends" she said. "And I did nothing but destroy that." She looked down and stared at the ground. "I feel so horrible. I'm not even worth your time. Or anyone else for that matter."

_Hinata…_Shoving his hands on his pockets, Naruto took a deep breath and smiled. "Why are you always degrading yourself?" he said. Her head snapped up to him. He looked at her and grinned widely. "I thought you had more confidence than that, Hinata" he said. He chuckled but it didn't last long. "Hey, you said you cried on Gaara, right?"

Hinata nodded slowly.

"What did he do, then?" As soon as he asked that, he was shocked to see a small smile play on her lips. As much as he wanted to believe it was for him, he knew well enough that it wasn't. And that realization made his heart twist in pain.

"Gaara tried to comfort me again" she said.

He felt a lump form in his throat. "A…Again?"

Hinata nodded. Although she was uncertain, she still said to Naruto, "Well, it was the second time I cried in front of him. The first one happened here in Konoha."

He swallowed hard. "I…I see" he said. _Twice…huh?_ He had only seen Hinata cry once. And that was when she was being bullied by three boys when they were still kids. That time, he didn't even have the chance to comfort her. He was beaten up pretty badly just by trying to save her. That time, it was only her apart from Iruka who had acknowledged him. And he didn't even know about it.

There was a moment of silence until Hinata spoke once again. "Naruto-kun, I would just like to thank you" she said earnestly. "You could have used the Kyuubi's power anytime you wanted during your fight with Gaara. Thank you for not doing so." She paused. "When you had arrived, Gaara had just apologized for avoiding me. He told me he didn't hate me and I was glad. I don't know what I'll do if he actually did. Gaara really is gentle. That's why I was really worried when you suddenly attacked Gaara—"

"Were you worried for Gaara or for me?" Naruto suddenly said.

Hinata's expression turned surprised. "Eh?" was all she could let out.

He had meant that as a joke, but it certainly didn't sound like one. _She just kept talking about Gaara…it had started ringing on my ears_, Naruto thought. A sad smile slowly formed on his lips. _Ah…how I envy Gaara._ He shifted his gaze to Hinata who was waiting for some kind of explanation to his question. He tried forcing a grin but, this time, he could only smile weakly. "Hinata…" he said. "Do you love Gaara?"

Caught off guard, Hinata stood shell-shocked and could only stare at him with her mouth slightly open.

Naruto averted his gaze to the village. "I'm not really sure about you but I know Gaara likes you. I noticed he has taken an interest in you ever since this year's chunin exams. I could see it from the way he looks at you." He felt his own voice quiver and he had to clear his throat to ease it. He just hoped Hinata hadn't noticed. "So, do you love Gaara? Because if you don't, I won't give you up to him or to anyone. I would keep you to myself and I won't ever let you go. And if you're love for me has faded, I'll make you fall in love with me again" he said with as much confidence as he can muster. "But if you do," he paused and tried to swallow the lump on his throat that was starting to get harder to hold down. He looked into Hinata's pale lavender orbs and he felt his eyes sting with tears that were threatening to pour out. "But if you do…love him…then, I wish you happiness."

Hinata realized what Naruto had just told her and heard herself gasp. He was making her choose. Would she choose to go to him? Or to Gaara? _Naruto-kun has really given it a thought. But…I had already made my decision even before coming home._

Naruto watched Hinata's feature soften. She raised a hand to her chest and smiled. And it was that smile that made him know of her answer. It was that smile that made him look away from her while he desperately fought back his tears. "So…I guess this is it." He tried to chuckle but it sounded more like pants. "Well, you should go and show up to your family before they'll demand a search party to find you" he said, indicating the end of their conversation.

Hinata noticed he was struggling. And she didn't have to ask what he was struggling from. She knew how he was feeling about this. She knew he was hurt. But she could not think of any other way to clear things up with him. That's what she came for. She didn't want any more misunderstandings. "Naruto-kun" she softly called, making him slowly face her. "You deserve better than me" she said. With that, she bowed and left.

Naruto watched her leave as silent tears finally poured freely down his cheeks. He shook his head. "No," he muttered to no one in particular. "_You_ deserve better than me…a dense idiot who failed to notice you until it was too late."

The view on top of the Hokage monuments was one of the most beautiful spots in Konoha. But despite that fact, not many people go there. And it was in that very place where the Rokudaime Hokage showed a moment's weakness and cried, pouring all the pain he felt in his tears.

* * *

"Naruto" Shikamaru regarded him once he entered his office. The Nara had his back faced to him as he was checking something on the desk, but he didn't have to turn around to know it was the blond Hokage himself. "Where the hell have you been?" Annoyance was clear on his usually lazy voice.

Naruto chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "If you're this irritated, I'm guessing Sakura-chan's been whining to you non-stop, huh?"

Shikamaru's exasperated sigh confirmed his suspicions. "It was troublesome having her constantly ask me of your whereabouts" he said and turned around. "I'm not your babysi—" he was cut short at the sight that greeted him. Standing before him was definitely Naruto but his eyes were so puffy that he was hardly recognizable.

The Nara wasn't one to butt in at other people's business, so he didn't even bother asking what happened. Though, his mind was already working on it. He heard from Sakura earlier that afternoon that Naruto was having a talk with Hinata so he won't be back until later. However, hours passed and he still hadn't returned. Sakura went to look for him to no avail. It wasn't until evening that the blond returned to his office, and to make matters worse, looking like crap. His eyes were puffy, obviously because he cried. So that would mean that his talk with Hinata had not gone well. But Naruto wouldn't cry over trivial matters. Then, that only leads him to one conclusion. Considering his feelings for Hinata, their talk was about their relationship.

Shikamaru silently watched Naruto go around his desk and sat on his chair. _So he was dumped, huh?_

Naruto's eyes met up with his before moving back down table. "I let her go" he said flatly.

A dark eyebrow shot up. "Oh?"

Naruto grinned. "You calculative bastard, I know you've already figured it out" he said. His grin toned down to a smile. "I let her choose. And it wasn't me."

Shikamaru was silent for a second. "So, in the end, she chose Gaara" he mused.

"You seem to know a lot better than me" Naruto grumbled, but it was said in a more playful manner.

Shikamaru just smirked in response. _Naruto acts mature whenever it comes to matters like relationships. Well, he's still stupid but he's getting better. He's leveled up from 'worst' to 'worse'._ "Naruto" he called, gaining the attention of the said blond. "How do you feel?" It was bothersome to ask, but he did it anyway.

Naruto thought for a second. "Hungry" he answered with a smile.

Shikamaru smirked. "Wanna go get some ramen?"

At the mention of his favorite food, Naruto beamed with happiness and was at the door in a flash. "Your treat. This is a direct order from your Hokage" he said in a tone filled with authority.

"Troublesome"

* * *

**A/N: Thank you so much not only for the great reviews you've been dropping, but also for the faves and follows. You had me smiling like an idiot. Lol.**

**Announcement: I'm planning on my first AU high school story. I created a poll for you dear readers to vote on what Hinata pairing you want. You can select up to 2. One guy will, of course, be the love interest of Hinata and the other will be the so-called "bad guy". I don't like saying antagonist. It sounds too cruel. You can find the poll in my profile and I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd go and vote. Thank you. :)**

**R&R, 10 reviews.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto **

**Chapter 24**

Temari shifted her weight from one leg to another while she stood in front of Gaara at the Kazekage's office. She watched her redheaded brother who was seated on his office chair silently read the scroll in his hand. She remained quiet, uncertain of what to say when she caught him glance to the side for the umpteenth time within just a few minutes of her being there. After a few minutes, he rolled the scroll and set it aside. He placed his elbows on his desk and laced his fingers together. His eyes, once again, slid down to the side.

"So?" Temari spoke, breaking the silence and gaining Gaara's attention.

"I do not have any questions regarding your report" he said. "You may leave."

Temari didn't move from her spot when Gaara's eyes shifted yet again. Finally, she crossed her arms and eyed her brother sharply. "Go on ahead and give it a hug, Gaara" she said flatly. "I know you want to." She was able to catch the look of surprise Gaara gave her before his face turned back to being impassive almost immediately.

Sitting at the side of his table was a red fluffy teddy bear with a white ribbon made of satin tied around its neck. Gaara stared at it for a bit longer before he slowly picked it up and raised it for him to observe. The stuffed toy felt soft against his skin, immediately reminding him of how soft Hinata's wrist felt when he had suddenly grabbed her.

_Her back was faced to them and she was about to go on her way to leave Suna. But once he saw her feet move in motion to leave, his body reacted automatically and his hand jolted up to stop her. Why he suddenly did that was beyond him. But all he knew was as soon as he did, it had seemed time had stopped and he could do nothing more but stare at his hand as if it was a new discovery of a weird specie. He could feel everyone's eyes on him but he didn't care. He could feel their questioning gaze and shocked expressions but he didn't care. What had seemed to only matter to him at that certain moment was Hinata._

_When he had confessed to her, he had never experienced anything in his life that was harder than saying three simple words. Never had he been more nervous, afraid and desperate in his entire life._

_Desperate…_

_Yes, he was desperate. He was desperate to think that confessing his feelings to Hinata would make her stay with him. He was desperate to even entertain the idea. The thought that it was he himself who suggested that she should go hadn't even crossed his mind, although he kept reminding himself. When he told her the truth that he loved her, he had been too afraid to know her answer so he interrupted her from saying anything. Was it considered cowardice? She belonged to Naruto, the friend who he respected the most. That was a fact his mind acknowledged but his heart didn't and wouldn't._

_When he had ended their talk and they were nearing the passageway, he didn't know why, but somehow he felt empty. It was sudden but it was as if something inside of him left and he went completely numb._

_It was a surprise even to him when he had abruptly grabbed Hinata's wrist just as she was about to bolt away from them…from him. He held her like he was holding for dear life. He stood there and held her with his mind set on one thing. _

_Not letting go._

_He had almost laughed at himself, at his thoughts. He was really desperate. But all he could think of at that moment was once he'd let go of her, he won't be able to see her again. If he let her go, he'll be handing her over to someone else. If he let her go, she would belong to Naruto and nobody else. Was that feeling he felt what they called as 'selfish'? Was wishing Hinata to be his considered as selfish?_

_Was he asking more than what he deserves?_

_Maybe he really was…because he had allowed his mouth to open and voice out what he had wanted to say from the very start. "Don't go…" he begged her in a voice not louder than a whisper._

"_I beg your pardon?" Hinata had said, obviously not hearing him._

_It was then he snapped to his senses and immediately let her go. He didn't know whether to be thankful or not when she hadn't heard him the first time. He straightened himself up and resumed his usual standing position. "Go to Naruto and clear things up with him" he said. Hinata eyed him for a second before she nodded her head. When she hadn't turned to leave and when her expression turned thoughtful, he looked at her curiously._

"_Gaara" she called him in her soft voice that never failed to lull him._

_He watched her slip her bag off from her back and searched for something inside. It didn't take long before she pulled something out and his eyes fixed on a red object her hand was gripping. Hinata turned to him and flashed him one of her sweetest smiles that made his heart skip a beat. _

_Her eyes then slid down to the object in her hands and she raised it to him. He followed her gaze and realized that she was holding out a red fluffy teddy bear. "I want you to have it" she said, almost shyly. "Please accept it."_

_Without much of a thought, he silently held his hands out and gently took the bear from her grasp. He looked at it, too surprised to do anything, much less say anything, _

"_I…found it at one of Suna's shops a few days ago" Hinata said. He was too busy staring at the bear but he could hear her smile when she spoke. "Do you remember when we went to a shop in Konoha? That time, you told me about how you treated your teddy bear as a friend and how it was taken from you. So, when I saw that bear, I…um…thought of getting you another one…another friend. Its color reminded me of your hair. I didn't know why, but as soon as I saw it I immediately bought it."_

_His eyes went to her face and noticed the pink blush coloring her smooth cheeks. She just told him that the bear reminded her of him. No, she only mentioned his hair. But that was a part of him. Technically, she thought of him when she bought it…right?_

_Hinata had her gaze to the ground. "I had wanted…to give it to you. But, that time, I just didn't know when because…well…you were ignoring me." That sent a wave of guilt through him. "I'm glad…that I could give it to you before I go" she said with a contented smile._

_She was doing this on purpose. She _had_ to be doing this on purpose. Why was she giving him a reason not to forget her? He failed in love as it is! Why was she making him suffer by giving him something to remember her by? Why was she doing this? She doesn't even love him like he loves her. _

_So…why?_

_His silence must have been the reason why Hinata was fidgeting in front of him. But what could he say? He was ecstatic with her gift but, at the same time, devastated. _

_His eyes slid down to look at the stuffed toy once more. In his hands was an object to remind him of her. He had failed in love…but he wasn't too sure if he could love someone else like he had loved Hinata. Hell, he wasn't even sure if he was willing to love someone who's not Hinata herself._

_He mentally shook his head. He didn't want to think of that just yet. His eyes shifted to her pale ones, pushing away his other thoughts. Just this once…he just wanted to thank her not only for her gift, but for everything she had done. "Thank you," he said. "Hinata." He watched her face break into a smile._

"_For what?" She asked the words he would usually say. _

_This made him mirror her gentle smile. "For everything" he said._

_Her eyes widened for a second before she averted her gaze to the ground. She timidly nodded her head. "Me too" she muttered._

The red fluffy teddy bear might not be a good substitute, but Gaara wrapped his arms around it anyway. He gave the bear a light squeeze, absently noting how cuddly it really was. "I had confessed to her" he said to his blonde sister who remained standing in front of him.

It took Temari a few seconds to process his words in her mind before her eyes widened at him. Her mouth dropped open and came out the words, "What?! Really?!"

He nodded. "The day she left."

Temari's mouth opened and closed for a few times until she finally managed to say something. "No wonder you two had an awkward atmosphere back then" she said. Then, she pointed an accusing finger at Gaara. "Well, why didn't you say anything to me until now?" She didn't give him time to answer when she bombarded him with a lot of questions. "How did you confess to her? How did you word it? How about Hinata? What did she say? What was her reaction when you told her? Did her face turn bright red? Did you even look at her when you confessed? Tell me! Did you two kiss?!"

The last question made Gaara's whole body tense which, of course, didn't go unnoticed by his ever-so-sharp sister. He heard her gasp and when he saw her lips curve into a sly grin, he knew what was coming. His sister actually squealed. _Squealed_, for Kami's sake!

It was then that the door opened and Kankuro came in. He stood beside Temari and handed Gaara a scroll but his presence didn't disrupt Temari's excitement.

"Details!" she shouted to her redheaded brother. "You've got to tell me _everything_, Gaara!"

Kankuro stared at her as if she had finally gone mad. "What's with you?" He immediately had his face shoved away by Temari with her not even sparing him a glance. He was able to balance and straighten himself up before he could fall to the ground. He shot her a glare and noticed how Temari's face hadn't even formed the slightest scowl and maintained the delighted look on. He shuddered. "Temari, you're scaring me" he said. "Why are you so damn happy?"

Temari finally looked at him. "Kiss!" she said with a big grin. "They've kissed!"

Kankuro whirled his head to the side and stared at Gaara as if observing him. Once his eyes slid down to the teddy bear he was still hugging, he gave his two siblings a funny look. "Gaara and Teddy-chan kissed?" That had earned him a loud and hard smack at the back of his head, still by Temari.

"You dolt!" she screamed at his ear. "Gaara kissed Hinata! And why the hell is it 'Teddy-chan'?"

Kankuro rubbed his sore head. "Hinata-chan? You kissed her, Gaara?!" he asked, too shocked to glare at Temari for punching him.

Gaara blankly stared at his siblings in front of him, seemingly unfazed about everything going on. His inner self, however, begged to differ. Great…he had somehow managed to put that incident at the back of his head only to be brought up by Temari. Why did she have to be so keen about everything? She wants details? Fine. He'll give her details. "There is nothing to tell" he said. "The kiss was accidental and it happened the night before she left. I confessed the following day but I didn't need her to answer in order for me to know what she truly felt. And it was one of the reasons I let her return home."

Temari and Kankuro remained silent, letting everything sink in. Then, they simultaneously frowned at their brother, looking baffled by something.

Kankuro took a step forward and raised a finger to point at Gaara. He opened his mouth only to close it again and looked like he was deep in thought. When he had finally spoken, he told his brother, "I don't get it." His voice sounded confused. "You said you knew her real feelings. Why did you still let her leave?"

Gaara's tilted his head to the side. "For what reason should I keep her?" he said. "Hinata and Naruto wished to be together. I don't have any right to prevent that." His two siblings appeared to be taken aback. A second later, they shook their heads. He frowned at them. They were either doing it on purpose or they had really thought of the same thing, thus, making them do the same.

Kankuro loudly sighed. "I can't believe I'm telling you this" he said and stared straight into Gaara's jade eyes. "Bro, you are such an idiot." In a blink of an eye, Kankuro found himself being held up upside down in mid-air with thick sand wrapping around him. He broke out in a cold sweat and panicked. He said in one breath, "I couldn't really blame you though because I know what you've been going through but I just haven't expected for you not to notice how Hinata-chan looks at you!" He gasped for air and shouted, "Can't you see she's in love with you too?!"

They all fell silent. Only Kankuro's loud voice echoed in the room.

Gaara froze. His sand haphazardly dropped Kankuro and slithered back to his gourd. His brother's words rung in his ears repeatedly and his eyes widened. _Hinata…loves me?_ He snapped to his senses and turned to Kankuro who was currently busy rubbing his backside. "How sure are you?" He narrowed his eyes at him. Hinata loves him? Of course not. That would never happen.

Temari decided to step in this time. "Gaara, you can clearly see it in her eyes." She paused to see Gaara's reaction. When he looked like he didn't believe a single word, she exhaled an irritated sigh. He may be an intellectual leader of a village but sometimes he could just be so…so…_stupid_! Temari mentally sighed. Though she knew, as Kankuro had said, that Gaara grew up being deprived of these things, so "stupid" isn't the right word for him. "Obstinate" would be the perfect word. "Okay then," she said and met Gaara's gaze with determined eyes. "Let's try this, little Gaara." She placed her hands on her finely curved hips. "When you kissed her, did she kiss you back?"

Recalling the scene where, in fact, Hinata did kiss him back, Gaara's eyes gradually widened. Hinata loves him? Apparently, she did.

He was _such_ an idiot.

* * *

"Ah, Hinata!" Naruto's face lit up once he saw her enter his office. "How's the mission?"

Hinata bowed in greeting then straightened herself to give him a scroll containing her report. "It went well, Naruto-kun" she said. It's been months ever since she rejected Naruto. After their talk, Naruto told her that he still wished to be close with her even as friends. She had been very glad and, since then, they remained friends. Naruto would talk to her as loudly and enthusiastically as he usually does and though Hinata was uneasy at first, she was not able to sense any awkwardness. Eventually, she grew comfortable around him. It was like nothing happened at all.

Naruto grinned. "Great! Good to know that." He took his eyes off Hinata to read her mission report. Shortly after, he quietly set the scroll aside and stood to enjoy Konoha's view from his window. "Say, Hinata..." he said softly.

She couldn't see his face, so she settled her gaze on his back. "Yes?"

"Don't you miss…you know…Gaara?" he said. He waited for Hinata to say something but nothing came. He looked over his shoulder to find her staring at the ground but he could see the faint blush on her cheeks. He moved his gaze back to the window, a reminiscent smile formed on his lips. Seeing the Hinata now reminded him greatly of how Gaara was able to change her and make her who she is now. To think someone as stoic as Gaara could return the sweet and innocent Hinata. Then, he started asking himself…what if it had been him? He inwardly shook his head. He almost forgot he's the reason why Hinata became unemotional in the first place. Although she had claimed everything was her fault, he couldn't help but think that if he hadn't been such a knucklehead and notice her, they would've been together already.

"I do …" Hinata's voice sounded and he turned his head to her. "I do miss Gaara" she said and smiled at him.

"I thought so" he said, smiling in return. "After all, it's been a long time."

She nodded. "Yes…it has."

He eyed her for a while. "I'm sure he misses you too." He watched her smile widen. Then, it suddenly fell. "Something wrong?"

Hinata shook her head. "It's just that I think Gaara is still holding himself responsible for making you mad during your last visit" she said.

Naruto just grinned at her. "I knew he would be doing that. That's why I sent him a letter the day after we talked" he said. "I really did some hard thinking, you know. I ended up having a pretty bad headache" he pouted, making Hinata giggle. The sound made him smile at her. "Anyways, he replied to my letter." He pulled a red and gold scroll case out from one of the drawers of his desk and handed it to Hinata. "As it turned out, it wasn't just me who misunderstood something" he said.

Hinata carefully opened the case and pulled out the scroll. She unrolled it and saw Gaara's letter written in his neat handwriting. She had only seen a glimpse of his penmanship a few times before during her visits in his office. She took her time reading it and it wasn't until her eyes reached the last paragraph that she understood what Naruto meant. It had read, _"I would be honest with you, Naruto. I'm in love with Hinata. This fact won't change, at least for a while. But do not worry. I have no plan to ruin what you and Hinata have. As your friend, I only wish for nothing but for the both of you to be happy. Please take care of her."_ Hinata couldn't suppress her smile. So that's why he had stopped her from answering his confession. He thought she still loved Naruto.

"I received that letter weeks ago" Naruto said, smiling sheepishly and rubbing the back of his neck. "I would've told you about it sooner but you were out on a mission and then I just forgot."

Hinata nodded in understanding. "Thank you for telling me, Naruto-kun" she said and placed the scroll back to its case. She replaced the cap and returned it to him.

He gave her a big grin, a faint blush coloring his sun-kissed cheeks. "Yeah, sure."

She smiled. "Then," she said and bowed her head low. "If you don't need anything else, I shall take my leave."

"Uh, yeah, good job" Naruto said rather lamely. With that, he watched Hinata straighten herself and padded out from the room. He sighed. "Gaara sure is a lucky guy."

* * *

Once she left the Hokage tower, Hinata went straight to the Hyuuga compound and reported to her family. After she was dismissed, she took a nice warm bath, got dressed in a clean set of clothes, and plopped herself on her cozy bed. She sighed in relief. Although it was still early in the afternoon, all she wanted to do was close her eyes and drift off to sleep. Being assigned to another A-ranked mission, she had been away for three weeks and was beyond exhausted. But instead of falling asleep, thoughts about Gaara flooded her mind.

She was already used to it, actually, for he never left her mind since she came home from Suna. Though, this time, she was particularly thinking about his letter to Naruto.

"_Please take care of her"_

She didn't know if she should be happy or furious with him. Happy because he really cared for her happiness. Furious because he interrupted her from telling him her feelings. If only he hadn't, he wouldn't have to assume the wrong things.

Sighing, Hinata rolled on her side and pulled the lavender blanket over herself. "I wonder what Gaara is doing now" she mumbled, finally slipping out of consciousness.

* * *

"I wonder what Hinata is doing now" Gaara unintentionally voiced out his thought. Although his voice was quiet, so was his office. And much to his dismay, someone had heard him.

"D-did y-y-you say s-something, K-Kazekage-sama?" Arima, who was standing in front of him, came to his office in behalf of the Naoshi clan to request for whatever assistance they could give for the village.

Gaara just stared down at the teddy bear settled on his lip. He had a hand absently feeling the smoothness of the satin ribbon tied around the bear's neck. Hinata told him the redness of the bear reminded her of him. It was a funny coincidence how the white color of the ribbon reminded him of her, pure and innocent. But, most especially, it reminded him of her eyes, her enchanting white eyes that had the faintest hint of lavender in them.

Remembering Arima's question, he said, "Nothing"

"I…I see" Arima said. Usually, she kept her mouth shut and never asked Gaara any personal questions. But she surprised herself by doing the complete opposite. "Kazekage-sama r-really misses H-Hinata-san, right?" she said. She felt terrified when Gaara's head snapped up to look at her with his eyes slightly widening. Still, her mouth continued, "I h-heard that t-teddy bear w-was given b-by Hinata-san…a-and Kazekage-sama t-t-treasures it a l-lot. W-Whenever I come h-here, I always s-s-see y-you h-hugging the b-bear."

Gaara was stunned. He was that readable? Him? A stoic person like him was _readable_? "Who told you?" he said, referring to her knowing about the bear. He looked into her blue orbs, waiting for her to answer.

Arima squeaked at his sudden attention on her. It was the first time he actually looked at her…and probably the last before she'll be punished for forgetting her place. "Um…th-the v-v-village…" she said, averting her attention to the ground. "Th-the whole v-village knows a-a-about it."

Gaara tensed from his seat. The whole village? Since when? Then it came to him that there were a few Sand ninjas around them that time. He just had not taken notice of them because he was too focused on Hinata.

"E-Everyone w-wonders when Hinata-san is c-coming b-back" she said. "They th-think y-you really s-suit each o-other." Her face was scarlet and she fiddled with the hem of her shirt. "K-Kazekage-sama…" She squeezed her eyes shut. "I…l-love y-y-you. B-But e-even though I d-d-don't want to a-admit it, I also th-think you and H-Hinata-san were m-m-meant for each o-other." She slowly opened her eyes to look at Gaara. "I…j-just w-want you t-to know that."

There was a long period of silence with Gaara staring back at Arima with a shocked expression. The girl had just told him she loves him. He was the least experienced person when it came to love matters, so he didn't know why he understood the underlying message to what she said. Maybe because, in some way or another, they were both the same. Arima only wanted to tell him of her feelings but she had already given him up. Just like when he confessed to Hinata but ended up giving her to Naruto. Then, he remembered what Temari and Kankuro had told him about Hinata's feelings for him.

He narrowed his eyes at Arima. "What are you implying?"

She gulped. "You d-deserve Hinata-san, t-to be w-with her" she said. "A-And you let h-her go. I j-just think that you g-gave up too f-fast especially because she l-loves y-you too."

Gaara shifted his eyes to the teddy bear. Why did it seem like everyone except for him was convinced that Hinata feels the same feelings he felt for her? It was like he was the only one who hadn't noticed it when he was supposed to be the closest with Hinata in all of Suna. But…perhaps Temari, Kankuro and Arima were right. He _hoped_ they were right. Because he never really wanted to move one with his life without the person he cared and loved the most beside him. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. "Thank you" he said after a while.

Arima's eyes widened. Did she hear that right? Thank you? Thank you for stating her opinion or for her telling him about her feelings? She felt her eyes brim with tears. Either way, she couldn't suppress the big smile that formed on her lips. And for the first time when talking with Gaara, there was not a stutter in her words when she told him, "You're most welcome, Kazekage-sama."

* * *

Tenten narrowed her brown eyes at the smiling Hyuuga Heiress walking beside her along the streets of Konoha. As usual, a group of her annoying admirers were not far behind them. But they were fortunately being held up by Kiba and Shino. Tenten narrowed her eyes further to the point of squinting. Hinata, Kiba and Shino were heading to the training grounds when she met them by coincidence. She decided to walk with them until they reached their destination, mainly because she wanted to have a talk with Hinata who had once told her of the Kazekage's confession. As much as she wanted to ask for details from her, she wasn't able to because either of them would be out on a mission whenever she had free time.

"Is something the matter, Tenten-san?" Hinata finally said after several minutes of being stared at by the brunette.

"I want to confirm something first" Tenten said. She glanced behind them before whispering to her, "Am I the only one you had told about Gaara's confession?" She watched in amusement as Hinata's face instantly turned red.

"Y-yes" Hinata said in a soft voice.

Tenten slyly grinned. "I see" she said. "So you really followed what I said to get along with him, huh?" Hinata stammered incoherently, trying to deny what she said. Tenten, on the other hand, stopped grinning when a thought came to her. "Hey," she said, silencing Hinata. "You admitted to me a few weeks ago that you missed him a lot."

Hinata blinked at her before she smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, I did."

Tenten narrowed her eyes at her once again. "Then why do you seem happy?"

Hinata's smile widened. "There's no use being depressed about it. And I really am happy, Tenten-san, because I get to be with my friends."

Tenten smiled at this and said nothing more. A moment later, however, she suddenly said, "Why don't you say it, Hinata?"

Hinata turned to her with an inquisitive expression. "What do you mean?"

"Say it to my face that you love Gaara" Tenten said with a mischievous smile on her face. Whatever reaction she was expecting from Hinata, what she was seeing was definitely not it. The girl had a smile on her lips and Tenten could make out the playfulness of her expression.

"No" the Hyuuga heiress said.

Tenten stood stunned for a second at Hinata's uncharacteristic behavior before chuckling. Hinata may have retained her sweet and gentle nature but something about her had changed.

Just as the brunette was about to say something, Sakura landed in front of their path. "Hey guys!" She greeted with a wave of her hand.

"Sakura" Tenten regarded the girl. Kiba and Shino stopped behind them as well, she noted.

Hinata gave the pink-haired kunoichi a short bow. "What brings you here, Sakura-san?"

"Hinata" Sakura said with a big smile. "Naruto wants to see you." Then, to the rest of them, "I suggest you say your goodbyes to her now." Before they could question her further, Sakura leapt off and disappeared from sight.

"What was that about?" Kiba said.

Tenten shrugged. "Who knows?" She turned to Hinata. "Do you know something?" Hinata just shook her head, her face showing her confusion. "Well, you better get going. The Hokage summoned for you."

* * *

Once entering the Hokage's office, Hinata spotted Naruto sitting behind his wide table, grinning from ear to ear. "Naruto-kun, you called for me?"

"Yo, Hinata!" Naruto said and grabbed a scroll from one of his drawers. "I know it's not your birthday but...here!" He handed her the scroll.

Hinata took it and stared at it in confusion. She blinked at the blond. "Um…this is?"

"My gift to you" he simply said.

Still not getting it, Hinata opened the scroll and found out it was a pass used to enter a hidden village when on missions. Slowly, she realized what Naruto intended and her eyes widened.

Seeing her reaction, Naruto chuckled. "You're welcome!" When Hinata was about to protest, he held up a hand to stop her. "Don't you want to see him?"

"I…I do but—"

"Then, why are you still here? Pack up, Hinata" he said, grinning.

Debating with Naruto was futile, she realized. So, she sighed and gave in. "Thank you, Naruto-kun" she said with a warm smile.

Naruto smiled in return, though his eyes showed a hint of sadness. "Don't worry about it" he said. Then, his smile turned to a grin. "Besides, it's one of a Hokage's wishes for all of his people to be happy!"

The "even if it costs their own" was left unsaid. "Still, thank you" Hinata said. She bowed one last time and left the room.

* * *

Hinata left as soon as possible after saying her goodbye to everyone she knew. She told them she's going back to Suna but didn't explain the reason. All of them were shocked except for Tenten and Sakura who knew the reason why. The pink-haired kunoichi said that she squeezed out the information out of Naruto because she was too curious on what happened between the two of them since their talk. On the other hand, Tenten became so excited upon hearing the news and gave Hinata a bear hug.

Hinata travelled alone and almost didn't stop to rest. She laughed at herself, just realizing how eager she really was to go and see Gaara. On the second night of her travel, she drifted off to sleep wondering what his reaction will be once he sees her. She was told by Sakura that Naruto did not send a notice to Suna regarding her arrival and said he wanted it to be a surprise for his redheaded friend.

It was afternoon of the third day when Hinata finally saw the passageway of Suna. Without knowing it, she increased her pace and went towards it. As usual, a Sand ninja landed before her and asked for a pass. Hinata reached for her pouch where the scroll given by Naruto was and gave it to the ninja.

"Are you the heiress to the Hyuuga clan, Hyuuga Hinata?" the Sand ninja said, looking at her eyes.

Hinata looked at him in surprise. "Yes."

The ninja smiled. "Everyone's been waiting for you."

She blinked, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Everyone?"

"Yes." The ninja nodded. "There were rumors going around that our Kazekage acts depressed for a few months now. And we believe your absence is the reason why."

Hinata could feel the light blush creeping on her cheeks. "Why do you think so?"

The ninja chuckled. "Simple" he said. "Kazekage-sama brings the stuffed toy you gave him everywhere he goes." With that, the ninja stepped aside and allowed Hinata to pass.

Hinata said a soft "thank you" before proceeding inside the village. Her first thought was to meet Gaara in his office for he was always there working non-stop. But before she could move to the direction of the Kazekage tower, she spotted Arima, Shiro and Kuro of the Naoshi clan a few feet away from her, waving at her. She smiled and approached them while Shiro and Kuro ran to her excitedly. Arima was not far behind them, walking at her own pace.

"It's been a long time, Hinata-sama!" Shiro said with a huge smile on her face. "We've been wondering when you'll show up again."

"So I've heard" Hinata said.

"Are you on a mission?" Kuro said once he stood beside his twin. "I don't think Kazekage-sama's expecting you."

Hinata shook her head in response. "I was given permission by the Hokage to come here."

She didn't have to elaborate in order for the twins to understand the reason of her visit. They looked at each other and their faces simultaneously broke into a wide smile. They turned back to her. "We'll inform Kazekage-sama right away!" Shiro said. She grabbed Kuro and ran towards the Kazekage tower before Hinata could utter another word.

"It's good to see you again, Hinata-san" Arima said, offering a small smile. "Nothing's been the same since you left."

"It's good to see you too, Arima-san" Hinata said, smiling in return. "How's everyone?"

Arima turned and walked along the street. Hinata followed shortly beside her. It was a while before she answered, "Shiro-chan, Kuro-kun, as well as I were permitted by Kazekage-sama to help around the hospital. My mother assists Oda-sama, who's the current head of our clan. Daisuke-kun's still undergoing proper training required of a Sand ninja since he's been relieved of duty as our protector along with the others."

Hinata nodded. "I see" she said. "How about Temari-san and Kankuro-san?"

"They've both been worried about Kazekage-sama" Arima said, stopping in her tracks to turn to Hinata. "He's been different lately, almost sad and…lost." She watched Hinata avert her eyes to the ground, thinking about what she said. After a moment of silence, Arima said, "Hinata-san, I've been very jealous of you."

Hinata's head snapped up in surprise.

Arima's attention was on a far distance, smiling wistfully. "In Gaara-sama's eyes, there's no one else in this world that could compare to you." She turned to Hinata. "There is no other person he wants to be with but you" she said. "And every one of us here in this village is aware of that." She inclined her head to the people around them.

Hinata turned to the citizens who were on the streets and noticed them look back at her with a pleased look on their faces, the others smiling her way. So, they knew. She guessed there had been rumors about her relationship with Gaara for a long time now. And she had a gut feeling that she was right. Suddenly, the bustling street fell silent. The people's attention settled on something...or rather, _someone_. Sensing a familiar chakra, Hinata turned around and found the person she really wanted to meet. Standing in a distance in front of her was Sabaku no Gaara with the same red hair, same red tattoo, and same jade eyes. What was not the same was the look on his face when he saw her. The impassiveness in his features was completely gone and in its place was a mixture of surprise and ecstasy.

"Hi…nata…" Gaara whispered so softly that only he could hear.

Snapping to her senses, Hinata walked towards him with a smile on her face while Gaara, who was still frozen in place, just watched her. Once she reached him, she looked up and stared straight into his eyes. Those jade eyes were looking back at her with indiscernible emotions swimming in them. "It's been a while, right…Gaara?" The next thing she knew, Gaara's arms were wrapped around her waist and she was pulled into his tight embrace. She felt him rest his head at the crook of her neck and nuzzle against her skin. Her face flushed exceptionally, especially after seeing the reactions of the citizens watching the scene before them. She wrapped her arms around Gaara's neck and buried her face in his shoulder to hide her embarrassment. She really wasn't into public display of affection and she never planned to start now.

"Hinata…" she heard Gaara whisper. And though it was faint, she noticed the slightly shaking of his voice.

"I'm sorry" she said softly, unsure why she apologized. She closed her eyes and hugged him closer to her. She sensed his chakra slowly scatter and surround them. Shortly afterwards, she felt herself floating up and she opened her eyes to see Gaara's sand envelop the both of them, obstructing her view of the people on the street. It was then she realized he was transferring them somewhere else with his sand. When she blinked, they were already in a different place with no one around but she could tell they were still in Suna. With Gaara still holding her, she turned her head to the side and saw the view of the village. She had already been there, she thought. Then, an image flashed in her mind and it came to her that that was the place where Gaara had confessed to her. She smiled and rested her head back on his shoulder. "Gaara?"

"Hm?" came his only response.

"You're such an idiot."

His head snapped up and turned to her in surprise, his arms immediately dropping back to the sides. It was obvious he was not expecting that. If anything, that was the last thing on his mind that Hinata would possibly say. When Hinata raised her head and pulled back slightly away to face him, he immediately caught the mirth glinting in her pale eyes. His expression changed to amusement. "Yes, I've been getting that a lot lately from my fat brother" he said rather bluntly, making Hinata burst out laughing. He smiled at her as he listened to the sound of her laughter. He really had missed her…_badly_.

"Kankuro-san's not fat" Hinata scolded gently. "If anything, he's well-built."

Gaara narrowed his eyes at her before he looked away. "If he's so 'well-built', why don't you be with him then?" he mumbled.

Hinata could almost feel him pouting. She placed a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles. Gaara could sometimes be so jealous. Like the first time he threatened the group of guys who kept following her in Konoha. "I…" She stared at the ground, blushing. "I don't wish to be with him" she said.

Gaara turned back to her. If he had visible eyebrows, he would've raised one already.

Hinata could feel her entire face heat up. She quickly buried her face in his chest for cover. "I…I like your physique better."

Her voice was muffled by his clothes but Gaara managed to hear it, causing him to smile. He had to admit, that compliment made him swell with pride…mainly because it was Hinata who said it. Still, he thinks his brother's fat. "Is that so?" he said. Hinata nodded her head without removing her face against his chest. Remembering her previous remark, he asked her, "Would you care to explain why I'm an idiot?"

It took a moment before Hinata pulled away and looked up at him with her blush still present but a little receded. "You're an idiot for letting me leave" she said with a small pout. It took an incredible amount of self-control on Gaara's part to not grab her face and kiss her. "You're an idiot for assuming the wrong things" she poked him in the chest and tried her best to glare at him. "And most especially," she said. "You're an idiot for stopping me from answering to your confession."

Gaara was silent as he watched her fist her hands on his chest while she frowned at him. "Is that why you're here? To tell me your answer?"

Hinata tried to keep the eye contact but found herself unable to do so. Instead, she settled her gaze to his chest. "Yes" she said.

Gaara felt his own heart thunder against his ribcage—as if it wasn't doing just that when he found out she was in Suna. He gulped and tried his hardest to sound as indifferent as he could when he said, "What is your answer, then?"

As soon as she heard him ask her, Hinata squeezed her eyes shut and desperately fought down the blush creeping up her face. She managed to succeed only a little. Her insides were in turmoil. She could feel billions of butterflies in her stomach, her heart pounded at an unsteady rate she thought to be impossible and she felt light-headed. She took a deep breath and willed herself to calm down even a little bit. Slowly, she opened her eyes and found Gaara looking back at her, waiting for her to answer. Mustering possibly all of her courage, she raised her hands to his face and cupped it. She tiptoed to reach his face and, before Gaara had any time to react, she closed her eyes and touched his lips with hers.

Her lips moved slowly and softly against his and, in a second, Gaara kissed her back, synchronizing his lips with hers. He tilted his head to the side and deepened the kiss while his arms found their way around her waist and pulled her closer to him. Hinata's hands left his cheeks only to replace themselves around his neck and through his soft red hair. It was softer than it looked, she vaguely noted. Wanting to feel more of his tresses, she slowly raked her hand up his scalp, making Gaara groan against her mouth and—if possible—pull her even closer.

When Hinata pulled away moments later, she panted and her face was flushed. She couldn't even bring herself to look straight at Gaara, who happened to be doing the same thing as her. She fixed her eyes to the ground and didn't even bother removing her hands that were resting on his chest. "That…" she breathed, "was my answer…"

Gaara nodded absentmindedly, though Hinata couldn't see it. "I see…" he said, huffing. "Nice answer…" They stood in complete silence while they steadied their own breathing when Gaara suddenly asked her, "How did you know I was assuming things?"

Hinata lifted her head only to settle her eyes on his shoulder. "Naruto-kun showed me your letter" she said.

He nodded his head. His jade eyes briefly went to her slightly swollen lips before he forced them to look at her pale lavender orbs. He remembered the first time he talked to her, he found himself staring at her moonlike eyes. That time, he didn't want to admit he was captivated by them. When her gaze met his, she quickly looked away with a blush on her cheeks. "Why can't you look at me?" He still asked even though he most likely knew the answer.

Hinata's blush turned a darker shade of red and she stammered out a response.

"Hinata," Gaara gently called, silencing her. "Please look at me." He watched her slowly look up and meet his gaze. "You may have answered. But you did so through your actions" he said with a ghost of a smile on his lips. "Now I want you to answer me through your words."

Hinata searched his eyes and saw the mischievous glint in them. She pouted. He was enjoying this, huh? Well, good for him. But isn't he enjoying it too much? It was hard for her as it is and she could almost feel herself close to fainting! And now he wants her to say those three words? It was obvious in their kiss but, apparently, Gaara wanted to tease her. Why? Was this his revenge for making him think she didn't feel the same way about him? But it wasn't even her fault! He was the one who thought so!

"Say it, Hinata" Gaara gently prodded.

She suddenly remembered Tenten asking her the same. Then, as if on replay, her face broke into a smile. "No."

Her response stunned Gaara for a second before he smirked. "Is that so?"

"Why don't you say it, Gaara?" she said in a teasing tone.

His eyes widened for a split second. "Fine" he said. His hand shot up to hold her chin firmly. He turned her head a little to the side while he leaned down to her ear. "I love you, Hinata" he whispered in her ear softly that sent shivers down her spine. In all honesty, he only did this so Hinata won't see how flustered he was.

She blushed. _Why could he say it so easily?_ She felt Gaara's hand release her chin and she turned back to face him.

"Your turn" he said with a triumphant gleam in his eyes.

Hinata gulped while she tiptoed once again, cupping his cheeks. But this time, she passed his lips and lightly kissed the kanji on his forehead. _He may have said it, but I…_She pulled away and smiled sweetly at him. "No" she said. _I would never say it._

The look on Gaara's face was that of a child deprived of the toy he wanted to have. "That's not fair" Gaara said with a frown.

She just laughed and gave him a peck on the cheek. Gaara looked at her and shook his head, indicating he wasn't satisfied. So, she gave him a light kiss on the lips. Still, he shook his head. She raised an eyebrow, then, hooked her arms around his neck and kissed him fully on his lips, feeling him smirk. Without hesitation, Gaara pulled her against him and kissed her back.

She would never say…

_I love you, Gaara_.

* * *

**A/N: It's not the end yet. Stay tuned for the short epilogue. *sniffs* It's ending…huhuhu…my story's ending…*sniffs***

**Oh and, please don't get your hopes up. It's not marriage or something along those lines. I can't write that stuff yet. Sorry…**

**One last thing, I'm leaving the poll in my profile open. The AU story may take a while 'cause I decided I'm taking a break from writing after this story ends. R&R! :)**


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